Chapter 66: The Dead and the Living

Caelus leaned back in his bed, feeling like a mummy.

Bandages covered nearly every part of his body, wrapping tightly around his chest, abdomen, arms, and legs. Even his shoulders felt restricted. Whoever had wrapped him had apparently decided that movement was a privilege he had not earned.

He stared at the ceiling for a moment, then tried to stand.

The moment his feet touched the floor, Mira was beside him.

"Young Master, please."

She reached for his arm, but Caelus caught her wrist before she could pull him back.

"I’ll be fine."

"You were unconscious for three days."

"And now I’m awake."

He released her and pushed himself upright.

Pain immediately tightened through his abdomen, deep and hot beneath the bandages. His knees weakened for a fraction of a second, but he forced his balance back into place and straightened.

Mira watched him with an expression that made it obvious she expected him to collapse.

He didn’t.

"Bring me something better to wear."

Mira hesitated before nodding.

"Yes, Young Master."

She crossed the room and walked out.

"You haven’t recovered completely yet."

Austin’s voice came.

Caelus turned his head.

The Head Healer stood near the door, arms folded, watching him with the tired expression of a man who had already discovered precisely how difficult this patient was going to be.

"I noticed."

Austin walked closer and examined the bandages around Caelus’s abdomen.

"If you truly did, listen carefully. No training. No duels. Light walking is the most strain you should put on yourself for now."

Caelus remained silent.

"I’ll have mana drinks sent to you. They’ll help accelerate your circuit recovery, but they won’t make your body invincible."

Austin’s eyes narrowed.

"And do not cast anything beyond light Zero-Tier spells until I clear you."

Caelus gave a small nod.

"And never overexert yourself. There are going to be people who try to provoke you because of your rank. Until you’re recovered, you can reject them if they issue a ranking duel."

Caelus’s attention returned immediately.

"What do you mean?"

Austin smiled.

"You’re Rank One."

Caelus stared at him.

Rank One.

That’s going to irritate a lot of people.

"I see."

Austin raised an eyebrow.

Before he could say anything, Mira returned with the clothes.

Austin cleared his throat.

"Don’t forget what I said. Nothing too strenuous until you recover."

Caelus looked at him, then slowly raised his eyes toward the ceiling.

He closed them.

"Okay."

Austin stared at him.

"That did not sound reassuring."

Caelus opened his eyes.

"Nothing is reassuring these days."

Austin sighed through his nose.

"I’ll leave you to it."

He turned and walked out.

Mira waited until the door closed before helping him change.

The charcoal suit was formal without being extravagant, the fabric dark enough to appear almost black beneath the room’s light. A high collar framed his neck, while the cut was loose enough around his torso to avoid pressing too heavily against the bandages beneath it.

Caelus adjusted his cuffs when Mira finished.

He looked at himself for a moment before turning toward her.

"What’s the occasion?"

Mira lowered her gaze.

"Today is the memorial for the students who died during the examination. I adjusted your outfit because I guessed you’ll be attending."

She hesitated.

"The Patriarch also sends his regards."

Caelus waited.

Mira added, "He said your result was as expected."

Caelus stared at her.

Then a quiet laugh escaped him.

His father had apparently expected him to place first after everything that had happened.

No concern.

Just an acknowledgment that the result had been exactly what the Patriarch believed it should be.

"As expected," Caelus repeated, the corner of his mouth still lifted.

He slipped his hands into his pockets.

"Let’s go."

Mira followed him out.

The memorial grounds were already crowded.

The sunlight was almost painfully bright, spilling across the Academy’s pale stone and making the rows of engraved names gleam beneath the morning sky. The brightness should have made the place feel peaceful.

Instead, it made the silence feel wrong.

Caelus walked toward the memorial with Mira a step behind him.

People noticed.

Some tried to hide their stares. Others didn’t bother.

He caught fear in some faces, admiration in others. Suspicion lingered in several more, while resentment showed plainly in the expressions of those who had already decided what his victory meant.

The whispers reached him before he had even reached the memorial.

"Why is he here?"

"All of them died because of him."

"If he hadn’t taken the Hero, they wouldn’t have died."

"He killed them."

"He’s a cheater."

Caelus heard every word and kept walking.

Beside him, Mira’s hand trembled.

She glanced toward the students whispering about him, then lowered her hand and said nothing.

Caelus kept walking.

Ben stood among the survivors.

Eve was farther ahead.

Elysia and the Saintess were together, while Hexia, the special admission beast-tribe princess, stood among the other first-years.

Caelus saw them all.

His attention moved farther until he found Leon.

Caelus walked and stopped beside him.

Leon turned.

The boy looked almost as bad as Caelus felt. Bandages covered his body, his eyes were red from exhaustion, and dark circles had settled beneath them. Tears had dried along one cheek without him seeming to notice.

He looked back toward the memorial.

His eyes moved across the names until they stopped.

Kyla.

Caelus followed his gaze.

"You knew them?"

"Not well."

Leon swallowed.

His eyes never left the name.

"But I still watched them die."

Caelus remained beside him.

For once, there was nothing useful to add.

A short distance away, Lucian stood alone.

The Hero had separated himself from the other survivors, his gaze fixed on a single name.

Kyla.

Caelus turned and watched him.

He knew how this scene was supposed to go.

Kyla’s death had been part of Lucian’s original story. A turning point. A wound that would reshape him.

A part of Caelus had still hoped this time would be different.

Leon had survived and stayed there.

Caelus had been there, another anomaly himself who shouldn’t have been alive at that time.

Maybe that would be enough to change something.

Unfortunately it wasn’t.

Lucian looked lost.

The brightness that usually lived in his eyes was gone, replaced by something hollow and distant.

Caelus felt a faint pressure in his chest.

At least this will serve as character development.

Lucian slowly turned his head.

His eyes met Caelus’s.

For a moment, neither moved.

Something dark flashed through the Hero’s expression before his features hardened.

He turned and walked away.

Caelus watched him disappear into the crowd.

He dismissed whatever passed through them and looked at Kyla’s name again.

He had done it. He was Rank One despite starting with D-rank potential, despite everything that had been stacked against him, and despite almost dying.

But Caelus wasn’t delusional enough to believe he could have done it alone.

Eve had fought the creature.

Lucian had delivered Divine Judgment.

Both had created the opening that allowed the others to survive long enough to keep fighting.

And yet the creature would have regenerated.

His eyes settled on the memorial stones.

If he hadn’t destroyed the exposed core, everything they had done would have been temporary.

A chill crawled down his spine.

The difference between surviving and dying had been the distance between his hand and the creature’s core.

Caelus looked at the numbers.

Two thousand candidates had remained for the examination.

Only one hundred and fifteen had returned.

One thousand eight hundred and eighty-five people were dead.

The original story had left one hundred and forty survivors.

Twenty-five people who were supposed to live were gone.

Caelus stared at the names for several seconds.

Then he reached toward Leon.

His hand settled on the boy’s shoulder.

"You did your best."

Leon didn’t answer.

Caelus kept his voice quiet.

"You couldn’t have saved everyone."

His hand left Leon’s shoulder.

Caelus turned away.

He wasn’t good at this.

There were no perfect words for the dead.

There was only what remained after them.

He walked back through the crowd, Mira following behind him.

Eve stood ahead of him.

She watched him approach, then glanced at the bandages beneath his clothes.

"First place," she said. "And you almost died."

"Apparently."

Caelus kept walking.

"You’re second." Caelus said, looking at her.

Eve’s mouth curved into a faint smile, but her eyes remained serious.

"For now."

He walked past.

Mira followed behind him.

By the time Caelus returned to the Academy’s residential district, the pain in his abdomen had settled into a dull, persistent ache.

Caelus stopped before the gate of a mansion and looked up.

As Rank One, he had been given an entire residence within the Academy grounds.

He almost smiled.

So this was what it felt like to be treated according to Vespera standards.

It was probably still inferior to the Vespera estate, but that wasn’t exactly a difficult standard to fail.

At least it was better than the excuse for a residence the Academy had provided before the examination.

Caelus approached the entrance.

Runes flickered across the enormous doors, their light traveling along the engraved patterns before the locks released with a quiet click.

The doors opened.

Beyond them stretched a wide lounge beneath high ceilings, sunlight spilling across polished floors and dark furnishings.

Caelus stood at the threshold for a moment, then stepped inside.