ch 85,86,87
Absolutely. Chapter 85 marks the first real confrontation on academy grounds. The night is no longer safe.
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Chapter 85 – Blood on the Grass
The bell didn't ring.
There was no warning.
Just a sharp, wet crunch in the darkness — then silence.
And then, screaming.
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Academy Southern Field – Midnight
The training grounds had been quiet.
Dozens of first and second-year students slept in nearby dorms, their bodies sore from drills, their minds already dreaming of ranks and glory.
But the beasts didn't care.
Six of them slipped through the southern wards — camouflaged insect assassins with saw-blade limbs and dripping venom sacks. No magic signature. No footsteps. Just movement and murder.
The first student never even got to wake up. His head hit the wall before the poison entered his veins.
By the time the third body hit the grass, alarms began to ring.
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Ray's Perspective
Ray was already awake.
He stood in the shadow of the east dorm, eyes glowing faintly.
Seventeen whispered:
"Academy defenses have a three-second delay in Zone Delta. That's how they got in."
Ray didn't answer.
He was watching.
The insects were surgical. Efficient. No chaos. No screaming from them — just death.
He whispered, "How many?"
"Six. All Level 2. Four slicers. One venom drainer. One egg-spitter. Coordinated swarm tactics."
Ray smiled darkly. "Let's test something."
He raised his hand.
[Skill Activated: Silken Nest – Spawn Spiderlings]
From his shadow, a dozen bone-colored insectlings emerged — skeletal little monsters with glassy eyes and sharp silk blades.
"Go."
They skittered into the dark.
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Battle – South Field
The insects had reached the courtyard.
An instructor cast a flame burst — it fizzled against a slicer's carapace. Another student tried a wind spell, but his hand was torn off mid-cast.
Then the spiderlings arrived.
They didn't fight head-on.
They latched.
To eyes. To joints. To wings.
They didn't kill — they immobilized.
And that was enough.
Because Ray arrived a moment later.
His voice was calm.
"Rise."
[Skill Activated: Rise Undead]
Target: Recently dead student — still warm.
The corpse lurched up, now hollow-eyed, and drove its training spear through a slicer's thorax.
The courtyard became a blur of chaos, screams, and acid blood.
But in the center of it all, Ray walked untouched.
Seventeen spoke again.
"You saved them."
"No," Ray whispered. "I saved tools."
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Aftermath
3 students dead
2 instructors wounded
6 insect beasts neutralized
Ray credited with a single assist (he hid his magic signature)
Academy officials blamed a "security gap."
But word spread among students:
"Someone summoned spiders."
"Someone turned a corpse into a fighter."
Ray heard the rumors in the cafeteria the next morning.
He ate quietly. He smiled.
Let them wonder.
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Hidden Domain Report
Absorbed: 2 Beast Cores
Mutated: 1 Spiderling (now F Rank, semi-intelligent)
Upgrade: Silken Nest [Now Spawns Sticky Mines]
Total Combat Units: 34 + 8 Special
Seventeen's final report:
"Tier 1 Gate breach has accelerated. Bigger things coming. Expect Level 4 beasts in under 10 days."
Ray whispered back:
"Then we
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Chapter 86 – The Blade Prince Arrives
The morning sky over the academy burned gold, but tension rippled beneath the sunlight.
A new name buzzed across dorm halls, classrooms, and practice grounds:
Cailen of House Varell.
Third son of the Dawnblade King.
Bearer of the Windsteel Sigil.
Known across five provinces as the Blade Prince.
He arrived not in silence, but on a winged lion beast, wrapped in silver threads and noble fire.
Students gathered.
Instructors bowed.
Even Headmaster Orin stepped out to greet him.
---
Ray watched from the library window.
Seventeen hummed.
"S-rank potential. Wind affinity. Sword specialization. Ego level: 97%."
Ray didn't reply. He was watching Cailen's smile — sharp, elegant, and cold.
"He's dangerous," Seventeen warned.
"And he's been sent here to hunt… something."
Ray's hand clenched. "Let him hunt."
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Academy Courtyard – Later That Day
Cailen's first act wasn't to boast.
It was to challenge.
"I've heard your rankings," he said to the top students. "But I prefer blade to board. Spar me — or admit you're cowards."
Two seniors stepped forward. One left with a dislocated arm. The other left unconscious.
Cailen didn't even breathe hard.
Then he turned.
"Where's the summoner from last night?" he asked, loud enough for everyone to hear.
Silence.
No one pointed. No one spoke.
Ray watched from a bench beneath the tree.
And smiled.
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Training Arena – Evening
Ray finally stepped onto the arena floor after hours of silence.
Cailen stood waiting, blade drawn, a quiet smirk on his lips.
"You're him."
"I'm no one," Ray replied calmly.
The arena wasn't full — but enough students lingered, whispering.
Ray didn't summon anything.
Cailen raised a brow. "Won't use your beasts?"
Ray smiled. "I'll use what I need."
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The Duel
It started fast.
Cailen blurred forward — a flash of silver and wind.
Ray leaned just out of range. No parry. No block. Just calm evasion.
Cailen pressed harder — blades flickering, bursts of wind disrupting footing.
Ray moved like water.
Then he snapped his fingers.
[Passive Activated: Bone Net Trap – Arena Triggered]
The stone beneath Cailen cracked. Bone vines surged, wrapping his foot for half a second.
Enough.
Ray flicked a bone dagger from his sleeve.
Straight at the prince's throat.
Cailen caught it — barely.
He stared at Ray for a long moment.
Then, he smiled.
And lowered his blade.
"Interesting."
He walked off the field without another word.
The crowd broke into whispers.
Ray didn't bask.
He just walked away.
---
That Night – Hidden Domain
The Spine Tree had grown a new branch:
A hanging jaw-shaped fruit filled with black mist. Seventeen called it the Devour Seed.
Planting it in a corpse created a hybrid — part plant, part undead.
Ray grinned.
He
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Chapter 87 – The Prince's Gift
Dawn broke over the academy like a blade drawn slow.
Ray was already awake.
In his hand: a silver box, no bigger than his palm. No inscription. No note. Just left quietly on his dorm desk during the night.
Seventeen scanned it three times.
"No traps. No curses. Origin: Cailen."
Ray opened it.
Inside… a single feather — dark gold, edged with storm-blue.
[Item: Gale Phoenix Feather]
[Rank: A-]
[Effect: Increases speed and wind affinity when embedded into gear. Can also be consumed for temporary buff.]
Seventeen said what Ray already felt:
"This is a message. A gesture. Not peace — curiosity."
Ray smiled.
"Then let's make him more curious."
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Hidden Domain – Late Morning
Ray planted the Devour Seed into the corpse of a mutated bear beast.
The reaction was instant.
The body jerked. Roots burst from its back. Moss wrapped around exposed ribs, binding them into shape.
[New Creature Created: Mossghoul Bruin]
[Type: Plant-Undead Hybrid]
[Passive: Spore Trail (slows enemies)]
[Skill: Crushing Root Slam]
Ray nodded in approval. "Perfect for crowd control."
Seventeen added, "Your domain now supports hybrid evolution. Use it wisely. These are harder to control."
Ray smirked. "Then I'll grow stronger too."
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Academy – Afternoon Combat Class
Cailen stood near the training rings, watching Ray spar with three students at once.
Ray didn't summon his beasts.
He used daggers. Feints. Tripwires made from fine bone silk.
One by one, the others fell.
Cailen clapped once, slowly.
"Impressive," he said, voice carrying. "But the day is coming when that won't be enough."
Ray met his eyes. "Then I'll be more than enough."
They smiled at each other.
A silent agreement: rivals… for now.
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That Night – Cracked Gate Region (200 km South)
The Tier 1 Gate pulsed again.
The air shimmered.
And then they came.
Six-legged insectoids, each the size of a dog, poured through the crack — black carapace glistening, pincers clicking.
Their eyes burned green.
Behind them, something larger stirred. Still stuck in the gate… but trying to push through.
[World Alert: Invasion Level Rising]
[Estimated Time Before Overrun: 6 Days]
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Hidden Domain – Ray's War Room
Ray stared at the projected map Seventeen provided.
Insect markers blinked red on the southern edge.
He had two days before the academy learned of the outbreak.
Three before the public panicked.
Six before the first human town burned.
Ray's voice was cold.
"Prepare the army."
Seventeen replied:
"Undead ready. Beasts ready. You… still bleeding potential."
Ray stepped outside. The moonlight kissed the Bone Orchard.
And the wind carried the scent of war.
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