So much for a routine dungeon crawl.
We'd been following Gilford through winding tunnels for what felt like hours. Every turn was just more damp rock and eerie silence. The students were exhausted. The mana in the air was thin. Jaren looked like a puff of wind could knock him out.
"Just little more exploring," Gilford promised. "Then we turn back."
Famous last words.
The tunnel widened ahead, light glowing faintly from clusters of blue crystal embedded in the walls. We stepped into a wide cavern — and immediately, every instinct I had screamed danger.
Something waited at the far end.
It stepped forward.
A hulking, six-limbed beast — half stone, half chitin, with glowing orange lines threading across its body like lava veins. A jagged maw full of serrated teeth. One eye missing. The other fixed on us.
"Oh great," I muttered. "A dungeon boss. That's fun."
Gilford cursed under his breath. "Skitter. Class B. Defensive type. Spread out!"
But the students didn't move fast enough.
The Skitter roared — a sound like boulders grinding — and charged.
Panic. Screams. Spells launched in every direction. Half of them fizzled.
I drew my blade, kept low. Waited.
The Skitter slammed into the front line. Two students went flying. Gilford threw up a mana barrier just in time to keep the rest from getting pancaked.
"Keep distance!" he shouted. "Target its joints!"
Easier said than done. The thing moved like a wrecking ball with legs. Every swing of its clawed arms cracked the stone floor.
Jaren hurled a firebolt. It splashed harmlessly off the Skitter's shoulder.
"Fire's too weak!" I called. "Try ice or earth—bind it!"
The Skitter charged again. I lunged, slicing at its leg — barely a scratch. It kicked me back like a ragdoll. I rolled, teeth rattling.
Okay. Time to stop holding back...a little.
I used a little vector manipulation. Just a touch. Enough to boost my speed, not enough to blow my cover.
Force. Momentum. Gravity. Everything had a direction
I shot forward, zig-zagging around the Skitter's swings.
"NOW!" I shouted. "Jaren — bind its feet!"
The kid hesitated, then slammed his palms down. Thick bindings burst from the ground, wrapping around the Reaver's legs.
It roared, twisting — distracted.
I used the opening.
Sword up, mana surging, I leapt — and slammed my blade straight into the Skitter's exposed shoulder joint.
CRACK.
The arm tore free, crashing to the ground.
The beast screamed, stumbling back. Crystals on its back flared red.
"Final phase!" I called. "It's charging up!"
Sure enough, the Skitter's core pulsed like a furnace. Heat rolled off it in waves.
"Everyone behind cover!" Gilford barked.
The Skitter's mouth split open. Mana built in its throat.
No time.
I dashed forward. Made a barrier from vectors to protect myself.
One shot. All in.
My blade glowed faintly —Sun Breathing,First form: Dance — as I slammed it upward, piercing straight into its skull.
The Skitter froze.
Then collapsed. Headless.
Silence.
Then coughing.
Then cheers.
"You—" Gilford turned to me, eyes wide. "That was impressive swordwork."
I shrugged. "Got lucky."
He didn't look convinced.
But I was already walking away.
---
We surfaced an hour later, dirty, sore, and down three academy-issued cloaks.
As we reached the academy gates, Gilford clapped his hands. "Good work today, all of you. Survived your first boss battle. Stand proud, you are strong."
Most students groaned in response. A few collapsed onto the grass like they'd just climbed a mountain.
Jaren limped over, bruised and grinning. "We lived."
"Barely," I said. "But hey, next time might be easier."
He looked at me, confused. "There's a next time?"
I just smiled.
Three more days.
And then my adventure begins.
---
I woke up sore in places I didn't even know had muscles. Which I again healed with my magic.
Turns out, fighting a horse-sized mushroom in a cave while babysitting mana-sick students wasn't great for spinal alignment.
My uniform jacket—still crusted with cave goop—hung like a warning sign from the back of my chair. I stared at it while brushing my teeth, wondering if dry-cleaning trauma counted as a school expense.
Oh...and yoriichi's assimilation is complete but accelerator is still stuck on 56%. I think he will take atleast one more month.I have time anyways and I will put spiderman in the assimilation slot next.
[Character Assimilation]
Fully Assimilated: Loid Forger, Do Janggon, Lee Joohee, Yoriichi Tsugikuni
In Progress: Accelerator (56%),Spider-Man (12%)
Two more days.
Then the Gacha resets.
Then, maybe, something good.
I glanced at myself in the mirror. "Come on, lucky draw," I muttered. "Just this once."
"Are you talking to your reflection again?" my roommate asked, still in bed.
"Better than talking to you."
Heh.
---
Mana Theory was even worse than expected.
Professor Drywell spoke like she was preaching gospel, hands gesturing wildly, beard wobbling like it had its own mana signature.
"Mana is not simply power—it is behavior. It flows. It chooses. It—"
I checked out somewhere between "mana" and "not."
Instead, I spent the class watching clouds roll lazily past the window. Freedom was right there. Out of reach. Mocking me.
Beside me, a student fell asleep mid-scroll note. Another tried balancing his pen on his nose for twenty minutes. He failed. Repeatedly.
And I? I survived. Barely.
---
Lunch was a spectacle. The survivors of the dungeon dive had become local celebrities.
"Well I struck the final blow," claimed one student loudly. "Probably saved us all."
That was funny, considering he nearly impaled himself tripping over a stalagmite.
Deric plopped down across from me, tray stacked high like he was carb-loading for war.
"Think they'll put our faces on the academy walls?" he asked.
"If they do, I'm transferring."
We laughed. The food was terrible. The company wasn't. For a moment, I wasn't thinking about powers, secrets, or anything heavier than how many bites of hard bread it would take before my jaw gave out.
I needed that.
---
The second day started slow.
A breeze rolled through the open window of my dorm room, smelling faintly of early spring and something fried from the cafeteria kitchens. That was something.
I dressed lazily. No combat gear, no lectures about formations or spell control. Just school. Just another day.
Just one day left.
---
Ancient Spell History lived up to its name.
It felt ancient. It felt like history. And it dragged on like both combined.
Professor Helmont read from the textbook like he was narrating his last will. I jotted fake notes and sketched a few "Spellcaster Suffering Index" graphs in the margins. My current mood was somewhere between "bored enough to astral project" and "physically evaporating."
I counted the seconds.
I made it to 812 before I nearly lost consciousness.
---
Later that evening, I walked through the outer gardens alone.
Mana lamps glowed gently in the falling dusk. Leaves rustled, and the air was thick with that calming hum of ambient energy that only Xyrus seemed to have—quiet, alive, serene.
I found my usual tree near the lake. Thick roots. High branches. Great view of the stars.
I sat.
No training.
No pretending.
No masks.
Just me.
I pulled out my notebook and flipped to a clean page. The only thing I wrote was:
Tomorrow.
Then I closed it, leaned back, and looked up at the sky.
Whatever comes next—whatever I draw—changes everything.
No more pretending.
Let the dice fall.
-------------------------
CHAPTER END
A.N.
So yeah, next chapter is gacha chapter. Give ideas for an adventurer template who has a secret identity.
I have a character in mind but it can be changed.
Anyways, how was the chapter, any thoughts.
Thank You.