---
The fires had faded, but the scent of scorched stone still lingered.
Von Advocate al Mi, once the pride of Fleedorb, had turned into a mass grave. Over 8,000 students were dead. Almost half the faculty gone. And now, just as hope was supposed to rise, it was struck down again.
The Headmaster passed away.
A day after the monster fell, he collapsed quietly in his chambers.
Multiple 6th Stage healers—some of the continent's finest—had tried everything. But nothing worked.
His veins were filled with dark traces, pulsing unnaturally.
His blood didn't clot.
His heart… bled until it stopped.
They said,
> "It was like something was cursing him from the inside. Something we couldn't touch."
Ryu stood at the outer edge of the mourning circle, watching as his once-invincible Headmaster was sealed into a black marble coffin.
Mina stood next to him, clenching his hand tightly. She didn't cry anymore. Not because she wasn't sad—just that her tears were already gone.
---
The next day, royal soldiers came.
Not ordinary ones. These were the personal guard of King Velmir Dreya II, the current monarch of Fleedorb. His presence shocked everyone.
Most people only ever saw his statue in history books or coins.
But now, the King himself walked through the ruined school.
He wore no crown. Just a long dark-blue coat lined with white runes. His eyes were sharp, calculating. The aura around him… made even the remaining 6th Stage soldiers lower their heads.
Behind him followed twelve elite investigators, each at least 6th Stage or beyond.
He stood in the center of the cracked courtyard and looked at the destruction for a long moment. Then he spoke:
> "This isn't just the fall of a school.
This is an attack on the safety of the Eastern Continent.
On Fleedorb.
On humanity."
He raised a hand.
> "Find the source. I want to know how a World-Class monster appeared in my land… undetected.
If it was planted.
If it was summoned.
If it was sent."
His voice was calm. But behind the words was a pressure only those nearby could understand.
---
For the next few days, everything changed.
High-level patrols arrived. Fleedorb's skies were filled with surveillance mobs and air-runed scouts.
The school became a restricted zone.
Teams investigated the rift residue, the monster's aura, and the bodies left behind.
Ryu and the rest of the surviving students were kept under careful observation. Each of them gave reports—especially the upper-ranked ones.
Reina was summoned first. Then Ryu.
His answers were simple.
> "I don't know how it came. I only reacted."
They didn't press further.
But even Ryu could feel it.
Something about this incident wasn't natural.
---
Three days later, Ryu returned to the empty dormitory.
Reina was sitting on the ledge near the collapsed west building, watching the sunset in silence.
He walked up beside her. Neither said anything for a while.
"…You think this was just bad luck?" she asked quietly.
Ryu shook his head. "No. The Headmaster was one of the strongest men alive. It's not possible he died like that for nothing."
Reina nodded slowly. Her voice trembled slightly. "They're hiding something."
Ryu didn't answer.
But deep inside, he agreed.
---
To be continued..