Day 54 in the secret realm — 6:47 AM
Sebastian stood at the teleportation platform, watching dawn paint the artificial sky in shades of gold and rose. Behind him, his team gathered their equipment—Gabriel checking weapons, Elara reviewing maps, two other Class A students whose names he hadn't bothered to remember.
Hazel and Leo arrived separately, their Class C uniforms standing out among the elite.
"You're late," Sebastian said without turning.
Hazel's face paled. "We came as fast as we could. The dormitory—"
"I don't care about excuses." Sebastian finally turned, his cold eyes fixing on them. "You know the location. You'll guide us. If you're lying about what's in that cave—" He let the implication hang.
Leo swallowed hard. "We're not lying. There's something there. We saw the entrance from the high ground. Nova went in, and when he came out—"
"Five ranks higher. Yes, you've mentioned." Sebastian gestured toward the platform. "Let's go. We'll see for ourselves."
The formation flared to life.
Thornfield Waystation — 8:23 AM Local Time
They landed hard, as always.
Sebastian recovered first, his cultivation at 2nd Order, 9th Rank making the transition easier. Gabriel and Elara followed, then the other two—Marcus and Elena, both Class A, both deadly.
Hazel stumbled, catching herself against the wall. Leo wasn't so lucky—he fell, landing hard on the stone floor.
"Pathetic," Gabriel muttered.
Sebastian ignored them, already moving toward the door. "The swamp is two hours by vehicle. We waste no time."
Ferngrove Swamp
The swamp had changed since Nova's visit.
Where before the mist had been thick with beasts, now it was eerily quiet. The bodies of hounds and serpents lay scattered, already decomposing. The smell was overwhelming—death and rot and something else, something older.
Sebastian held up a hand, signaling halt.
"Something happened here," Elara murmured, her wind affinity sensing disturbances. "A battle. A big one."
Gabriel crouched beside a dead hound. "These wounds aren't from students. Too deep. Too precise." He looked up. "One person did this. Maybe two."
"Show me the cave entrance," Sebastian ordered.
Hazel pointed east, her hand trembling. "That direction. Maybe half a mile. There's a rock formation—"
"Lead."
They moved through the swamp, weapons ready. But no beasts attacked. The few that remained fled at their approach, too traumatized by whatever had happened here to fight.
Interesting, Sebastian thought. Something terrified them.
The Cave Entrance
The vine curtain hung exactly where Hazel had described it.
Sebastian pushed through, entering the cave. Behind him, the others followed—Gabriel with weapons drawn, Elara with wind ready, Marcus and Elena watching their backs.
Inside, darkness.
Sebastian raised his hand, light affinity flaring. The cave illuminated—and they saw.
Nothing.
Empty chambers. Scattered bones. The remains of ancient fires. But no mana stones. No glowing herbs. No drake.
Nothing.
"This is it?" Gabriel's voice echoed. "This is the treasure cave?"
Hazel's face went white. "There was—I swear—we saw—"
Leo stepped forward, desperation in his voice. "The entrance was hidden. Nova went in here. When he came out, he was different. His eyes had changed. His cultivation had jumped five ranks. There was something here."
Sebastian ignored them, walking deeper into the cave.
The chambers stretched before him—natural formations, old bones, the marks of ancient habitation. But also something else. Scorch marks. Massive claw marks on the walls. A section of floor that looked like it had been melted and refrozen.
Battle, he realized. A serious battle.
He found the main chamber.
It was enormous—easily two hundred feet across, its ceiling lost in darkness. And at its center, the evidence of violence.
Stone shattered as if by massive impacts. The floor covered in dark stains—blood, long dried. A wall collapsed where something had been thrown against it. And in the corner, half-hidden by shadow, a pile of scales.
Sebastian crossed to it, kneeling.
Drake scales. Dozens of them. Some still attached to chunks of flesh, others scattered where they'd fallen. He picked one up, examining it.
Juvenile drake, he estimated. Third Order. Maybe higher.
His eyes widened.
Someone had killed a drake. In this cave. Alone.
He looked around the chamber with new understanding. The battle hadn't been one-sided—it had been a slaughter. The drake's blood was everywhere. Its scales scattered like confetti. Its body—where was its body?
He found the answer near the back wall.
A massive skeleton, half-hidden by shadow. Mother drake, by the size of it. Dead for years, maybe decades. But the juvenile—its body was gone.
Harvested, Sebastian realized. Someone took everything. Scales, claws, organs, blood. Everything.
He stood slowly, turning to face the others.
"There's nothing here."
Hazel's face crumpled. "But—"
"Nothing." Sebastian's voice was ice. "No herbs. No mana stones. No treasure." He walked toward them, each step deliberate. "You brought us here for nothing."
Leo stepped in front of Hazel, his hands raised. "Wait. Wait. There was something. Nova took it. He must have—"
"Took what? A drake corpse? A cave full of mana stones?" Sebastian stopped inches from Leo, looking down at him. "You expect me to believe one student killed a drake and cleared this entire cave in a single night?"
"I don't know what happened! But there was something here!"
Sebastian studied him for a long moment.
Then he laughed.
"Of course there was." He turned away, walking back toward the main chamber. "Look at this place. The scorch marks. The claw marks. The blood." He gestured at the destruction. "Something lived here. Something powerful. And someone killed it."
Gabriel's eyes widened. "You think—"
"I think Nova Almond is far more interesting than we realized." Sebastian smiled—thin, cold, dangerous. "A Class C student kills a drake. Takes everything. Tells no one. Climbs thirty-five ranks in three days." He shook his head slowly. "Who is he?"
No one answered.
Sebastian turned back to Hazel and Leo.
"You're useless now."
Leo's face went white. "Wait—we can help—we know him—we can—"
"You can die."
Gabriel moved before anyone could react. His blade found Leo's throat—SCHICK—and the boy crumpled, blood spraying across the cave floor.
Hazel screamed.
Elara caught her before she could run, wind binding her limbs. "Please—please—I'll do anything—"
Sebastian walked toward her slowly.
"You'll do nothing." He stopped before her, studying her terror with mild interest. "But I'll give you a choice. Quick death, or slow. Your preference?"
Hazel stared at him, tears streaming down her face.
Then, unexpectedly, she spat at him.
Sebastian's expression didn't change. He wiped the spittle from his cheek, looked at it, then back at her.
"Slow it is."
He turned and walked away.
Behind him, Hazel's screams began.
Sebastian stood at the cave entrance, waiting.
Behind him, the screams had stopped. Gabriel and Elara emerged, their clothes splattered with blood.
"It's done," Gabriel reported. "Both of them. No one will find the bodies."
Sebastian nodded. "The cave?"
"Empty. We checked every chamber. Nothing left."
"Good." Sebastian stepped through the vine curtain, back into the swamp. "We return to the academy. I have questions for Nova Almond."
Elara fell into step beside him. "You think he'll talk?"
"I think everyone talks." Sebastian smiled—that thin, cold expression. "Eventually."
Academy Arena — Same Time
Nova stood on Platform 4, his blades dripping with blood.
Across from him, his opponent—a Class B student named Marcus Webb—lay unconscious, defeated in under a minute.
The referee raised his hand. "Winner: Nova Almond."
The crowd roared.
Nova didn't hear them. He was already walking off the platform, his mind elsewhere.
GODLESS SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
ARENA VICTORIES: 8
RANKS GAINED: 37
CURRENT RANK: 48
BLOODLINE ACTIVATION: 55%
SOUL PERCEPTION: Level 1 — Active
NOTE: Soul Perception range: 1km. Upgrade requires System Level 2.
System Level 2, Nova thought. Another fragment.
He needed to find it. Soon.
Sebastian's Room
Sebastian sat in darkness, thinking.
The cave haunted him. Not its emptiness—that was expected. But the evidence. A drake, killed by one student. A battle that should have been impossible. Treasures that should have been there, all taken.
Who are you really, Nova Almond?
He pulled up the academy records on his crystal.
Nova Almond — Student File
Origin: Aetheria Prime Branch
First Year Rank: 2nd overall
Current Class: C
Current Rank: 48
Cultivation: 2nd Order, 7th Rank
Superpower: Teleportation (A-Rank)
Bloodline: Unknown
An unknown bloodline, Sebastian mused. That explains the physical enhancement. But not the frost. Not the eyes.
He needed more information. Needed leverage.
His eyes drifted to another file.
Priscilla — Student File
Origin: Aetheria Prime Branch
Current Class: D
Current Rank: 104
Cultivation: 1st Order, 9th Rank
Superpower: Plant Affinity (A-Rank)
Relationship: Romantic involvement with Nova Almond
Sebastian smiled.
Everyone has weaknesses.
He closed the files and stood, crossing to the window. Outside, the artificial sky glittered with false stars.
Soon, he thought. Soon I'll know all your secrets.