The battlefield had fallen silent.
Fragments of shattered void puppets littered the academy field like broken statues from a forgotten war.
Smoke drifted slowly through the air.
Cracked earth.
Burning grass.
Residual aura.
And standing in the middle of it all—
The students of Aetherion Academy.
Arios exhaled softly.
White-blue aura flowed around his body in calm waves.
Then—
A puppet rushed him from the side.
Its fist tore through the air.
Arios didn't even look at it.
"…Void Strike."
BOOM.
His fist pierced straight through the puppet's chest core.
The body exploded apart instantly.
Another descended behind him.
Then another.
Three more charged simultaneously.
Arios stepped forward once.
His movements smooth.
Unreadable.
Punch.
Elbow.
Palm strike.
Void energy erupted from every impact.
Three puppets shattered apart consecutively.
Meanwhile—
Zefair and Rei moved together like seasoned martial artists.
A puppet swung toward Zefair's head.
He tilted sideways barely enough to evade.
Then trapped the puppet's arm beneath his shoulder.
"…Too slow."
He twisted.
CRACK.
The puppet's entire upper body separated from its lower half.
Before it could recover—
Rei appeared beside it in a streak of lightning.
"…Thunder Fang."
A spinning kick crashed into the puppet's exposed chest.
The core ruptured instantly.
BOOOOM.
The puppet collapsed apart.
Nearby—
Destiny calmly walked through the battlefield.
Her crimson eyes glowing faintly.
One puppet rushed her.
Then another.
Then five more.
She sighed softly.
"…You're already late."
Her fingers moved slightly.
Time bent.
The puppets slowed.
Not physically—
Temporally.
Their movements dragged unnaturally.
Like existence itself was resisting them.
Destiny walked between them casually.
Touching each chest once.
Then snapped her fingers.
Time resumed.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
All five cores exploded simultaneously.
Silence followed.
Then—
The final puppet collapsed.
The battlefield was over.
Every single puppet destroyed.
Above them—
Noctivar covered his face.
Then began laughing.
Not angry.
Not frustrated.
Excited.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA—!"
His laughter echoed across the academy grounds unnaturally.
The air itself vibrated.
Then slowly—
Noctivar descended toward the ground.
His feet touching the ruined battlefield lightly.
Philis watched carefully.
Then glanced toward the students.
"…Do you all wish to continue?"
No one answered.
Not because they were afraid.
But because every single one of them was staring directly at Noctivar.
Philis sighed deeply.
"…They're not even listening."
Instructor Jin laughed loudly beside him.
"…Can't blame them."
The atmosphere had changed completely.
This was no longer training.
This was a collision.
Arios suddenly stepped forward.
"…Hey guys."
Everyone looked toward him.
He scratched the back of his head slightly.
Almost awkwardly.
"…I got a selfish request."
A pause.
Then his crimson eyes sharpened.
"…Could you allow Lysera and I to fight him?"
Silence.
Then—
Veldama smiled first.
"…Thought you'd never ask."
She casually turned around.
Walking back toward the teachers.
Cecil followed while stretching lazily.
"…Don't die."
Borus grinned.
"…Kick his ass."
Lex smirked slightly before walking away.
"…Try not to destroy the academy."
Alex silently returned toward the tree without a word.
Damrei shoved his hands into his hoodie.
"…Good luck."
Rei laughed lightly.
"…That guy gives me bad vibes anyway."
Zefair crossed his arms while walking back.
"…I want the next fight after this."
Soon—
All of them sat beside Philis, Jin, and Miss Bromet beneath the shade tree.
Like spectators waiting for the main event.
Philis slowly sipped his tea.
Then muttered:
"…Young people are terrifying."
Meanwhile—
Arios walked forward.
Lysera stepping beside him calmly.
Black-and-white hair flowing behind her.
Crimson eyes locked onto Noctivar.
At that exact moment—
Both systems activated simultaneously.
DING.
Mission Triggered
Defeat the User of the Reality Codex
Reward:
Massive Growth Synchronization Concept Resistance Increase System Evolution Progress
Danger Level:
EXTREMELY HIGH
Arios and Lysera glanced at each other.
Then smiled.
Noctivar watched them carefully.
His grin widened slowly.
"…Interesting."
Then—
He spread his arms outward.
"…Let's get down to the main event."
The sky darkened.
And suddenly—
Multiple gigantic unseen hands erupted from his back.
Not energy.
Not aura.
But distorted conceptual limbs.
Invisible forces so dense they warped space itself.
The ground beneath Noctivar cracked instantly.
Even the surrounding atmosphere bent unnaturally.
Philis' eyes narrowed slightly.
Jin stopped smiling.
Miss Bromet quietly lowered her teacup.
And for the first time since arriving—
Noctivar finally looked dangerous.