Chapter 33: Raid (2)

Eterna Academy Front Gate

“Yaaawn…”
“Your mouth’s gonna tear open, man.”

It was the dead of night.
Two men were stationed at the academy’s front gate, keeping watch.
They were battle mages dispatched from various countries to maintain order at Eterna Academy.

Due to the recent surge in incidents and accidents at the academy, nations had taken it upon themselves to send reinforcements.

“What the hell are we doing here, anyway…”
“Man, we’re just lowly public servants. If the higher-ups say jump, we jump.”
“Seriously? Since when did you become so obedient?”
“Try getting disciplined once. You’ll see.”

The two guards idly passed the time with pointless chatter.
Even though they knew about the recent cracks and disturbances, they were well aware that their presence here was more of a political gesture than a practical necessity.

“By the way, weren’t you an academy graduate too?”
“Yeah, I was.”
“Aren’t you gonna say hi to your old professors?”
“They probably don’t even remember my name.”
“No way! How could they forget the academy’s top graduate?”

The atmosphere was relaxed and lighthearted.
It was the only way to endure the long, pointless hours of their night shift.
Besides, their pride in their abilities played a part in maintaining the comfortable mood.

Just then—

Flick—

Darkness blanketed the entire academy.

“Huh?”
“Power outage?”

At the same time, they lost their sight.

“W-Wait, senior!”

Just as one of them was about to envelop his eyes in mana to regain his vision—

Puk—!

“Grrk…!”

A sharp blade pierced right through the middle of the man’s throat.

Cough—

Hot blood filled his mouth as he collapsed to the ground.
The senior guard, still standing dumbfounded, was hit by the thick scent of blood, realizing too late what had happened.

Quickly deploying a barrier and reinforcing his vision with mana, he finally began to regain his sight.
As he turned his head, he saw three figures approaching from beyond the gate.
The tall woman in the center opened her mouth.

“Begin.”

Fwoosh—

At her command, purple mana waves flowed from the two men at her sides, spreading across the entire academy grounds like a pulsating wave.

Crack—

Cracks formed randomly on the dome-shaped protective barrier that surrounded the academy.
Soon, the barrier shattered like broken glass.

The senior guard, witnessing this, started to back away in fear.

“Emergency—”

Puk—

A blade suddenly emerged from the air and pierced the senior guard’s neck, just like his fallen comrade.
He collapsed without even a final cry.

The woman, watching the scene, grimaced.

“Karon was taken out by these weaklings?”

Karon, a high-ranking member of Pandemonium.
It had been days since he left for the academy to retrieve the Necronomicon.
But since then, Karon had completely vanished.

“Karon would never abandon me…”

It was unthinkable that the ever-loyal Karon would betray her.
Which meant he must have died here.

“How dare they… How dare they…!!!!”

Who was it?
Who dared to take the life of her beloved Karon?

Her whole body trembled with rage, but she quickly regained her composure.
No matter what, it didn’t matter.
If she could just recover Karon’s body, she could always revive him later as her personal plaything.

“First, retrieve the Necronomicon. Then, find any traces of Karon.”
“Understood.”

Eterna Academy Central Courtyard

“Angela! Do you recognize them?”
“Yeah, Sis! That guy who died to the new recruit last time. His mana feels similar!”
“What?!”

Selena froze at Angela’s words.
The man who introduced himself as Karon.
If his mana felt similar, it meant one thing—he was incredibly powerful.

“Luke…”
“Huh?”
“Luke Richter! Where is that guy?!”

At this rate, the academy was in danger.
The only one who could handle the situation right now was Luke Richter.
Even if he wasn’t human but a dragon, he was undoubtedly a transcendent being far beyond human limits.

“Angela! Follow me!”
“But Sis! That’s the boys’ dorm!”
“Is this the time to worry about that?!”

Selena and Angela rushed toward the male dormitory.
In the shadows, a man merged with the darkness, silently trailing behind them.

Pandemonium Elder, Isadora.

Her mood was anything but pleasant.
The Necronomicon—a legendary forbidden book that itself was a taboo.
Pandemonium had poured unfathomable effort into obtaining it, reaching a point of desperation.

Hundreds, no, thousands of cultists willingly sacrificed their lives to glimpse the future.
After decades, Pandemonium had finally resumed full-scale operations.
And Karon, one of the high-ranking members, had taken matters into his own hands.

“Karon…”
Isadora whispered his name with a sorrowful voice.
“I miss you…”
They had promised to share love atop the ruins of the world.

But after Karon infiltrated the academy, his presence had abruptly vanished.
The last trace of him was at Eterna Academy.

There were only two possibilities:
Either he betrayed them or was killed in one blow.
The former was unthinkable.
Her beloved would never make such a foolish choice.

Which meant…
“How dare they… How dare they…!!”
Who was it?
Who dared to kill Karon?
Isadora made a vow.
If she ever met Karon’s killer, she would use forbidden magic to ensure they never die and suffer eternal torment.

And the starting point of that vengeance would be Eterna Academy.
Principal Stella was also currently away.
She had heard that Stella had left for Arcadium to unwind with the Tower Master.

At first, Isadora found it odd.
Someone so dedicated to the academy would just leave so easily?
It was almost as if she had left something dependable behind.

Just then—
“That lady over there!”

In the darkness, three figures rushed toward Isadora.
The girl in the center pointed her short arm directly at Isadora.

“A… A lady?!”
A seductive beauty who could captivate any man—that was how Isadora saw herself.
Yet this brat just called her a lady?

She was about to gather mana to tear them apart—

“Huh?”

Karon’s mana.
That familiar presence faintly emanated from one of the male students approaching her.

“So, it’s you?”

Isadora flashed a wicked smile, pointing her finger at the boy.

“I can sense Karon’s presence from you.”

The moonlight illuminated Isadora’s smile, making it seem almost divine.

“Die.”

She briefly considered extracting information but quickly dismissed the thought.
It was too bothersome.
If she just killed everyone here, she’d surely find a clue.

Above Isadora’s head, a spiral of purple mana began forming a spell array.

[ 8-Star Magic: Requiem of the Dead ]

From the array unfolding in mid-air, a dense mist billowed out.
Spectral wraiths erupted from the ground, ascending toward the sky.
The eerie mana permeated the mist that enveloped the area.
Once the array was complete, a haunting, solemn melody filled the air.
A requiem for the dead—
Not to mourn those who had already passed, but for those about to die.

“Ahahahaha!”

Isadora let out a piercing, clear laugh.
She lowered her gaze, eager to see the terrified expressions of the rookies.
Nothing was as beautiful as the fear of someone facing imminent death.

But their faces did not align with Isadora’s expectations at all.
The two girls appeared calm, as if fear had been erased from their minds.
And the boy on the left—

“Hey, Isadora!”

He suddenly called out her name.

“Hmm? You know my name?”

That was no coincidence.
He looked right at her and pronounced her name clearly.
Intrigued, Isadora momentarily paused the spell.

And then—

“Of course I know. You’re that psycho ghost who killed her cheating husband and then spent centuries murdering married men, right?”

Crunch—
A thick vein popped out on Isadora’s temple.

“Your type is strong men, but since you couldn’t find anyone stronger, you recently switched to good-looking guys, right?”

A bulging vein appeared on Isadora’s forehead as well.
Her breathing grew heavier, her chest rising and falling with fury.

“Whenever you see Karon, you call him ‘hubby’ and—”
“Shut up!!!!!!!”

Crash—!
At her outburst, every window in the academy shattered simultaneously.

“Wow, lady, you’ve got quite the lungs. Why are you at the academy? You didn’t come as a parent, right? Or did you come to find Karon, the guy you were so into recently?”

But that damned kid’s mouth just wouldn’t shut.

“Oh, this is amusing. Really amusing.”

Woooong—
Isadora’s long hair floated upward as if gravity had reversed.
The mana surging from her seemed to crush the very space around her.

“You’re digging your own grave.”

She had decided.
She would keep that little brat as a living specimen, preserved forever in an experimental chamber—neither living nor dead, stuck in an eternal limbo.
The boy’s face was decent, so maybe she could peel off his skin and put it to good use.

Just as she was about to complete the spell—

“Wait a second.”

The boy pulled out a handful of powder from his pocket.

“……What’s that?”

Isadora tilted her head, puzzled by the white powder.

Instead of answering, he just smiled.
“This? Sleeping powder.”
“Huh?”

Sleeping powder?
In this situation?

She couldn’t understand his actions at all.

“……?”

He sniffed the scattered powder, taking deep breaths through his nose.
Soon after, he started wobbling.

Thud—
He collapsed face-first onto the ground.

“W-What?!”

Isadora was dumbfounded.