"Well, I don't understand it."
Azrael closed the ancient tome with a frustrated sigh, setting it carefully on the stone floor beside him. Just like the mysterious diary he'd discovered in Sword Lake during his previous expedition, the symbols and script within this book remained completely incomprehensible to him.
He summoned his [Mark 3] recognition system and methodically photographed each page, just as he'd done before. While the physical diary would need to be surrendered to the authorities upon his exit from the secret realm, the digital copies could prove valuable for future negotiations with the Crimson Oath Society.
Despite the ambiguous relationship between the Imperial Court and the Crimson Oath Society, Azrael doubted the government would freely share such sensitive intelligence with underground organizations. The photographs represented a potential bargaining chip that could strengthen his position within the Society's hierarchy.
"I need to find someone who can teach me this script," Azrael mused, already planning his next moves. "Whether it's for infiltration work or acquiring similar artifacts in the future, literacy in these ancient languages would be invaluable."
With his current status as Master Lucian's disciple, accessing such specialized education shouldn't prove problematic. A simple request to his senior sister Alice or Master Lucian himself would likely open the necessary doors. Having connections within the Imperial Court certainly made certain endeavors significantly easier.
Azrael hummed contentedly as he began harvesting materials from the battlefield around him. The four Silver-level demons that had served as cannon fodder yielded exactly what he'd expected, a mixture of blue and green quality materials that brought his collection to an impressive twenty pieces.
The accumulated transaction fees alone would fund his advancement to Gold-level, and he could potentially trade these lower-quality materials to his senior brothers and sisters for higher-grade specimens. While most Silver-level Lore Cardian Masters would never exchange premium materials for common ones, regardless of quantity, Azrael's fellow disciples operated under different constraints.
For Gold-level and higher practitioners, Silver-level materials served no practical purpose beyond warehouse storage. They'd likely welcome the opportunity to clear out inventory space in exchange for materials they could actually use.
Finally, there was the prize from the elderly demon's defeat: a Silver-level [Immortal Demon Fox] (Gold) material.
"Gold quality, as expected."
The demon fox category remained consistently popular among Lore Cardian Masters, making this specimen equally valuable for personal use or future trading. Its versatility alone made it a significant addition to his growing collection.
"Speaking of which, what kind of genetic module did Pride extract?" Azrael wondered, accessing his symbiote's updated information through their mental link.
[Death Substitute]: When this module is integrated, the user can sacrifice a card of equivalent level to negate a fatal attack. The sacrificed card enters a ten-day cooldown period.
"No wonder that old bastard was so hard to kill." Azrael finally understood how the elderly demon had survived Lily's devastating sniper shot earlier in the battle.
While the ability was undeniably powerful, its utility for Azrael remained questionable. Pride's existing regenerative capabilities already provided substantial survivability, making an additional defensive measure somewhat redundant. Still, having multiple failsafes was never truly wasteful, one could never have too many escape routes in their line of work.
After securing all the valuable materials scattered across the underground chamber, Azrael prepared for the final phase of his expedition. This marked the longest he'd ever remained within a single secret realm, and the experience had proven both educational and profitable.
The remaining Bronze and Black Iron-level demons throughout the complex weren't worth the effort required to hunt them down. Their materials held minimal value for someone of his current advancement, serving only as potential currency exchange, hardly worth the time investment when weighed against other opportunities.
Azrael spread his wings and took to the air, conducting a systematic aerial reconnaissance of the entire underground network. Better to ensure no hidden Silver-level threats remained before declaring the mission complete.
Meanwhile, on the muddy surface above, Kevaugn and his two companions rode their summoned mounts through the forest at desperate speed. The three massive hounds carried them with tireless efficiency, but their pursuers showed no signs of abandoning the hunt.
"Panchitoan, do you think we'll actually escape this time?" one of his teammates asked, his pale lips betraying the fear he was trying to suppress.
Kevaugn forced himself to project confidence despite their dire circumstances. "We'll be fine once my cards recover from cooldown. There's still hope."
His second companion's face twisted with guilt. "I'm sorry, Panchitoan. If I hadn't needed rescue, your cards wouldn't be on cooldown right now."
"Don't blame yourself," Kevaugn replied firmly. "If we hadn't pulled you out, both Yaksha and Asura would have been overwhelmed anyway."
Their nightmare had begun several days earlier when they'd entered the supposedly quiet village marked in their operational sector. Finding it completely empty of demons, they'd moved to investigate the secondary settlement within their assigned territory.
That location had also been abandoned.
Realizing something was fundamentally wrong, the trio had rapidly searched every settlement in their designated zone. Not only were demons completely absent, but even wildlife seemed to have vanished from the area entirely.
Fortunately, one of their team possessed reconnaissance-focused cards that eventually detected traces of mass movement. The demons hadn't been eliminated, they'd relocated underground.
After extensive searching, they'd successfully located the entrance to the demons' new stronghold. But upon entering the subterranean complex, they'd discovered the relocated population had transformed their new home into a heavily fortified military installation.
The three students had walked directly into a prepared ambush.
Although the individual Silver-level demons they'd faced were relatively weak, their overwhelming numbers had slowly ground down the team's defenses. Lacking effective area-of-effect capabilities, Kevaugn's group had been unable to break through the enemy formation.
When his companions' cards began failing under sustained assault, Kevaugn had made the desperate decision to sacrifice his own cards as a rear guard, leading a tactical withdrawal from the demon stronghold.
Naturally, the demons had no intention of allowing potential witnesses to escape. The pursuit had continued relentlessly ever since.
"Damn it, just give me a little more time," Kevaugn thought bitterly. "Once Yaksha and Asura recover, I can return and eliminate every last one of those monsters."
Despite their current predicament, the demons pursuing them had paid an enormous price for their temporary advantage. The enemy force had been reduced to perhaps one in ten of their original strength during the underground battles.
The problem was that three exhausted students represented the end of their effective resistance, making the demons' decision to press their pursuit both logical and terrifying.
"The demon density in this secret realm is completely abnormal," Kevaugn observed grimly. Previous practical training exercises had never featured such massive concentrations of enemy forces.
"Absolutely," one of his teammates agreed. "Even if most of them are individually weak."
The other team member suddenly brought up an uncomfortable topic. "Speaking of which, I wonder how that freshman who replaced Panchitoan is managing."
"This is his first practical training exercise."
His expression grew increasingly worried as he considered the implications. Given their own experiences with the secret realm's unexpected dangers, a solo operator, especially an inexperienced one, faced almost impossible odds.
Kevaugn remained silent, his confidence in Azrael's survival capabilities shaken by their direct experience with the realm's true threat level. He'd initially believed the other student could handle basic self-preservation, but the sheer scale of organized demon resistance had exceeded all reasonable expectations.
And Azrael was operating completely alone.
"We need to survive first," Kevaugn finally said, cutting off the increasingly dark speculation. "If we make it through this, we can check on the situation in his sector afterward."
They were technically fellow students from the same academy, and with the secret realm's conditions proving far more dangerous than anticipated, investigating Azrael's fate wouldn't require significant detours from their own extraction route.
Kevaugn recalled that Azrael's assigned territory lay north of their current position. They'd observed him flying in that direction during the initial deployment.
His teammates offered no objections to the proposal, and the trio fell into focused silence as they concentrated on their immediate survival.
Suddenly, Kevaugn's face went pale. "They're catching up!"
His mental perception detected a Silver-level demon gradually closing the distance between them. Their mounts were tiring, and continued flight was no longer viable.
They couldn't escape. Not everyone possessed Azrael's comprehensive card combinations that offered both combat prowess and strategic mobility.
Just as despair began to settle over the three students, a black and red figure dropped from the storm clouds above, landing with ground-shaking impact directly in their path.
"Yo, long time no see."