The fire had been put out by the time Rhian and the others reached the scene.
Whatever panic there was had already settled down into scattered whispers. Students still stood around in groups, talking in hushed voices like they were afraid whatever caused the fire might still be nearby.
Word spread fast.
Someone said the flames started out of nowhere, right in the middle of one of the practice buildings. And when students with water abilities tried to put it out, it didn't work. The fire didn't react like a normal one.
Didn't shrink or sizzle when they poured water on it.
It just kept burning until eventually... it disappeared on its own.
Vanished like it was never there.
That only fueled the next wave of rumors, the good kind that students loved to blow out of proportion.
Some were already saying a powerful upperclassman had lost control of their ability. Others said it wasn't a student at all, but maybe a now instructor testing something forbidden.
Rhian stood near the edge of the crowd with Ash and Aras, listening but not really adding anything. He glanced around, catching pieces of every wild guess.
Ash had his hands in his pockets, casually grinning to himself like the whole situation was entertaining.
Aras stayed quiet, eyes scanning the faint burn marks still left on the stone floor ahead.
Rhian didn't say anything either.
With the fire situation handled and no real damage done, life on campus moved back to normal quicker than expected. The rumors stuck around, sure, but without any injuries or major destruction, students lost interest fast.
Some school guards were still lingering around, checking the scene, asking pointless questions, but most of the students had already left, moving back to whatever they were doing before the excitement.
Rhian, Aras, and Ash were walking through the halls, the crowd thinning out around them. It felt quieter now, less chaotic.
As they moved, Rhian glanced at the two.
"You guys wanna have a run at the simulation?" he asked, tossing the idea casually.
Aras, surprisingly, nodded without hesitation. "Yeah, sure."
Rhian raised an eyebrow a little at how quick the answer came. Aras didn't exactly throw himself into things unless he was interested.
Ash, walking on Rhian's other side, scoffed with a lopsided grin. "Haven't you had enough fighting for today? Might as well give you orange hair and a beard, then you'll fit the image."
Rhian blinked, confused. "What?"
Ash just waved it off like it didn't matter. "Nothing. Just talking nonsense."
Before Rhian could press him further, Ash smoothly slipped between him and Aras, throwing an arm around both their shoulders like they'd been walking like this forever.
"C'mon, let's go then," Ash grinned. "I'll watch. Let the two of you kill yourselves while I enjoy the show. Gotta keep my beautiful face untouched for important things... like survival."
Rhian shook his head, but he couldn't help the slight grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.
They arrived at the simulation room without much else being said.
It wasn't crowded, most students had already gone off to do other things, which worked perfectly for them.
Inside, the pods lined up neatly against the walls, sleek, large enough to fit a person comfortably, and expensive enough that only a place like this academy could afford having so many.
Ash, true to his word, walked right past the pods without even glancing at them.
He grabbed one of the large VR helmets hanging from the rack nearby. Unlike the full simulation pods, these things were cheap. Basic.
They didn't let you fight or feel anything, all they did was allow you to watch fights from different angles like a spectator in a virtual arena.
Perfect for someone like Ash.
He dropped down lazily into one of the empty chairs, setting the helmet over his head like it was just another day at the office.
"You two have fun breaking bones," Ash said, voice muffled slightly from under the helmet. "I'll be here, judging from a safe and comfortable distance."
Rhian stepped into his pod, Aras doing the same without a word.
As the pod doors closed, the interior lit up with soft light, scanning their bodies and loading the system.
Rhian rested his back against the seat, glancing at the options before him.
A grin pulled at the corner of his mouth.
'Let's see how far I've come.'
As soon as Rhian settled in the pod, the familiar darkness of the simulation space wrapped around him. It was quiet for a moment before the calm, slightly sarcastic female voice echoed through the space.
[Welcome back, Rhian Lock-ed-And-Broke.]
Rhian couldn't help but smile to himself when he heard it. It was stupid. He'd been the one who named it that way back after he set the system up, just messing around when he had free time after Nia left.
He left it there since. It never failed to make him grin, especially now that he was actually getting somewhere.
He waved open his status screen, the familiar layout coming into view.
---
Name: Rhian Locke
Age: 18
Divine Core: F Grade (0.98%)
Bloodline: Ragnarok
---
Abilities:
---
[Locked]
[Locked]
[Locked]
---
Unlocked Abilities:
> [Passive] Aquatic Adaptation — Able to naturally adapt underwater, forming the organs needed to breathe or survive in aquatic environments.
> [Passive] Predator Instinct — Enhanced reaction speed, hand-eye coordination, and heightened danger sense.
> [Passive] Ragnarok Physique — The user's body gains increased strength, speed, and internal magic storage. Physical adaptation is accelerated under pressure.
> [Minor] Reptilian Regeneration — Slow regenerative ability. Accelerates healing of minor wounds and stops bleeding. Deep wounds require more time to heal.
---
His abilities were the same. A lot were still locked.
But that percentage beside his Divine Core… that was the problem or for better phrasing, it was abnormal.
0.98%.
Almost at 1%.
And the weird part? He hadn't absorbed a single divine core since awakening.
He hadn't even seen one close-up, other than in class when they taught about it in Cores studies, and in Portal Studies and Monster Ecology.
Normally, that number didn't move unless someone absorbed the core of a monster. It was how every student, every hunter, and every carrier in the world got stronger.
Training, sparring, even fighting monsters with/without cores didn't increase your percentage. Everyone said the same thing. Aras said it like it was common sense. Nia confirmed it herself in class.
It seems Rhian was different.
That slow increase… it only started happening when he began fighting Nia regularly. Sparring harder. Pushing himself every day until his body was a mess of bruises and soreness.
The only thing that made sense… was Ragnarok Physique.
It was in the description, clear as day. Physical adaptation under pressure.
He stared at the ability for a long second.
If that really was the cause, then it was no small thing. It meant he could grow stronger just by surviving.
Just by fighting harder opponents, taking beatings, and pushing limits, his body would slowly force itself forward.
It was powerful.
But also dangerous.
Because if anyone with the wrong kind of mind found out… Rhian knew what would happen.
People didn't admire things like this.
They wanted to own it.
To use it and control it.
He wasn't stupid. He wasn't strong enough yet to protect himself from that kind of attention.
So, for now this stayed with him.