As Kenji pushed open the massive stone doors to the boss chamber, the drone faithfully followed him. He didn't look back at his team, knowing their worried eyes were glued to the live feed. He needed to be absolutely clear.
"Drone," Kenji said, his voice quiet but firm, resonating with a new gravitas. He knew everyone watching at the Academy would hear him. "Listen carefully. I sense a presence in here. An S-rank spiritual presence."
A collective gasp went through the Academy observation room. An S-rank! Kenji had confirmed the System's chilling warning.
Kenji's voice tightened, a raw emotion creeping in. "If I… if I fall in here," he continued, looking directly into the drone's lens, his eyes beginning to well up, "if I don't make it out, my teammates are to immediately evacuate this dungeon. That is an order. Their lives are paramount."
A single tear tracked a clean path down his demonic-blood-stained cheek. He turned, leaving the drone hovering near the entrance, and began to walk towards the oppressive, ancient darkness at the center of the vast chamber. Every step echoed in the cavernous space, drawing him deeper into the lair of the unknown.
The air grew colder, heavier, filled with an ancient malice. A voice, ancient and resonant, seemed to vibrate not through the air, but directly into Kenji's mind.
"Mere mortal," it rumbled, the sound a low, predatory hum. "How did you know I was S-ranked?"
From the shadows above, a colossal, terrifying form began its descent. It was a giant black widow spider, easily the size of a semi-truck, its segmented body a terrifying obsidian, its eight multifaceted eyes gleaming with malevolent intelligence. It moved with an unnerving grace, slowly lowering itself on strands of glistening, spectral web. Each of its eight legs was thick as an oak tree, tipped with razor-sharp claws. Two massive, dripping fangs protruded from its grotesque head.
"Most lesser beings cannot perceive my true power," the Spider Demon hissed, its voice echoing in Kenji's mind. "You are… different. A newly awakened S-rank. A delicious anomaly." It paused, its fangs clicking. "But still just a child."
"I may be a child," Kenji retorted, channeling his spiritual energy, the white-gold aura flickering around him. "But you're in my dungeon. And I'm not letting you break out."
Three Hours of Hell: The Edge of the Abyss
The battle began. It was a brutal, relentless dance of death that stretched for three agonizing hours.
The Spider Demon was cunning, its movements deceptively fast for its size. It spun webs of hardened spiritual energy, attempting to snare Kenji, filling the cavern with sticky, glowing traps. Kenji, using his A-rank Agility and Spiritual Enhancement (LVL 3), became a phantom, darting through the web-filled chamber, his movements a blur that made the drone's feed flicker to keep up.
He unleashed Divine Light in searing beams, tearing through the Spider Demon's thick chitinous armor. The demon shrieked, its black blood, thick and corrosive, oozing from the wounds. Kenji would then follow up with rapid-fire Spiritual Manipulation attacks, aiming for its glowing eyes, forcing the creature to recoil.
The Spider Demon wasn't just a brute; it was intelligent. It learned Kenji's patterns, adapting its attacks. Its massive legs, tipped with razor claws, became blurs themselves, striking with incredible force. Kenji weaved, dodged, and parried with spiritual shields, but the demon was relentless. Its fangs dripped with a neurotoxin that, even when narrowly avoided, made the air shimmer with nauseating fumes.
The fight was a symphony of destructive power. Every strike created wounds on both sides. Kenji's pristine uniform was ripped, his skin bruised where close calls had grazed him. He could feel the spiritual energy draining from him, pushed to its absolute limits.
In the Academy observation room, every onlooker was on the edge of their seat, transfixed by the raw intensity of the battle. Headmaster Sato sat rigidly, his fists clenched, watching his protégé fight for his life. Akari, Renji, Hiroki, Saki, and Goro watched in horrified silence, their hearts in their throats.
As time dragged on, Kenji's movements became less fluid, his breaths more ragged. He'd been fighting non-stop for hours, pushing his newly awakened S-rank power beyond anything he'd done before. The Spider Demon, though heavily wounded and bleeding from dozens of seared gashes, still moved with chilling resolve.
Kenji launched a powerful Divine Light attack, but the demon anticipated it, swiping a massive leg. Kenji dodged, but landed awkwardly on a slippery patch of black demonic ichor. His footing gave out. He stumbled, falling to one knee.
He gasped, sweat plastering his hair to his pale face. The intense exertion, the spiritual drain, the lingering pain from the earlier fights—it all crashed down on him. His aura flickered, growing dim. His body felt heavy, slow. He was becoming pale, his vision tunneling. He was running on fumes, completely depleted.
The Spider Demon seized its chance. With a guttural hiss of triumph, it lunged, its massive fangs dripping, aiming for Kenji's exposed neck.
Onlookers around the globe watched in horror, a collective gasp echoing in thousands of homes and viewing centers. "No! He's out of energy!" someone screamed in the Academy's observation room. "It's going to kill him!"
Kenji saw the gaping maw, the dripping fangs, coming closer, closer. He felt the chill of death, a cold embrace he knew all too well from his past insignificance. Is this it? Is this how it ends? The thought flashed through his mind, not with acceptance, but with a fierce, burning defiance.
No. I don't want to die. Not yet. Not after all this. Not when I finally found something to fight for.
A spark ignited deep within his core, not of spiritual energy, but of pure, unadulterated will. The resolve of a boy who had refused to break, who had found strength in his weakness, exploded.
His body began to glow bright red, an angry, vibrant crimson aura erupting from him, sweeping out in a shockwave that pushed the very air away. It wasn't the pure white-gold of his normal spiritual energy; this was something primal, something born of raw defiance. It was a second wind, surging through his veins, revitalizing every cell, every muscle. His exhaustion vanished, replaced by a ferocious surge of power.
The Spider Demon's fangs were inches from his face.
Kenji moved. A blur of crimson and white. He met the demon's lunge not with a dodge, but with a terrifying counter-attack. With unbelievable agility, he vaulted onto one of the demon's massive forelegs, scrambling up its chitinous armor. He moved with a speed and ferocity he hadn't displayed before, a primal roar tearing from his throat.
Reaching the creature's head, Kenji manifested his Divine Light with a new, terrifying intensity. It wasn't just a beam; it was a pulsating orb of searing white energy that he slammed directly into the largest of the Spider Demon's eyes. He poured everything into it, the crimson aura fueling the blast, enhancing its destructive power beyond measure.
The S-rank Demon shrieked, a sound of unimaginable agony. Its eye exploded, and the creature thrashed wildly, trying to dislodge Kenji. But he held on, his hands digging into its carapace, his newfound strength holding him firm. He continued to channel Divine Light directly into the creature's brain, tearing it apart from the inside.
With a final, ear-splitting shriek that echoed through the entire dungeon, the massive black widow spider convulsed, then exploded in a grotesque shower of black ichor and chitinous fragments. The sheer force of the detonation sent a shockwave through the chamber, making the drone wobble violently.
Kenji landed on the ground amidst the raining demonic remains, panting, the crimson aura slowly receding, leaving him bathed in the oppressive darkness once more, completely untouched.
In the Academy observation room, silence reigned. Every single onlooker was wide-eyed in disbelief. He had done it. He had pulled off the impossible. He had faced an S-rank demon, alone, for three hours, and won. And not only had his team survived, but he hadn't even been hit once throughout the entire dungeon run.
The former bullied kid had become a force of nature.