Chapter 38: Levelling Up

SHRIIIIING!

A sharp metallic ring suddenly erupted.

The pink-haired girl had returned, her katana flashing toward the instructor’s face as he twisted his wrist and sent the chain snapping outward.

CLANG!

It collided directly with the katana, and the girl was thrown backward, but her attack had accomplished something else: the instructor had been forced to divert some of the strength he was using against Declan.

Declan immediately took advantage of the opening.

He twisted aside, and the dagger scraped against his spear before he spun the weapon around his body, pushed his feet against the floor, and surged forward once more.

The spear slashed toward the instructor’s neck.

SLASSSH!

The instructor jerked his head aside, causing the spear to miss his neck by barely an inch, but its tip caught something.

The small rope holding the beaded chain.

SNAP!

The rope broke.

DROOOOP!

DROOOOP!

DROOOOP!

The beads struck the floor one after another, their sound echoing throughout the dojo as everything seemed to freeze.

Declan stared.

Then his face lit up.

"I did it!"

But the moment the words left his mouth...

Oh no.

The hairs on his body stood on end.

Declan slowly turned to find the instructor slightly bent forward, with the dagger already descending from above him.

It was already too close.

Declan tried to move.

Too late.

RIIIIIIP!

SPPLAAATTTERR!

Blood exploded into the air as the dagger sliced straight through Declan’s shoulder, tearing through bone and flesh alike before ripping completely through the other side and embedding itself into the dojo floor.

DROP!

Something fell to the ground.

Declan stared blankly.

I...

He unconsciously stumbled backward, and then...

BOOM!

A thick-veined leg crashed into his chest, the impact caving his chest inward and launching him across the room as Declan flew through the air before slamming violently into the wall.

Blood burst from his mouth.

His vision blurred, his eyes rolling backward as he collapsed face-first onto the floor, where blood slowly pooled beneath him, flowing from both his lips and his freshly severed shoulder.

His detached hand lay only a few meters away.

"GASSSSPS!"

Horrified gasps filled the dojo.

Nobody moved.

Every student stared at Declan lying motionless in a pool of his own blood before their eyes shifted toward the weapon instructor, whose daggers had already returned to his hands.

Blood dripped from their blades.

He casually flicked both weapons to the side, sending blood splattering across the floor, before the chains and daggers smoothly retracted into his sleeves.

The instructor walked toward Declan, bent down, and grabbed him with one hand while using the other to pick up Declan’s severed hand.

Then he turned and began walking toward the door at the far end of the dojo.

Just before stepping through, he stopped and looked back at the class.

"The class is over."

His voice was calm, yet it echoed through the dojo like the toll of a heavy gong.

"And just like today, every class will only end when blood splashes into the air."

He paused.

"Either yours..."

His white eyes swept across the students.

"...or mine."

With those words, the instructor turned and stepped through the wooden door, and the moment he crossed the threshold, the door sealed itself shut, its surface smoothing over until it looked as though there had never been an entrance there at all.

The students could only stare at one another as silence settled over the dojo and the reality of what had just happened slowly began to sink in.

X-Guard Academy wasn’t merely known as the second-strongest Nexian school in the world.

It was known for something else too.

The Most Brutal Nexian School in Mordran.

________________________

His head buzzed.

A constant ringing filled his ears, growing louder and louder until, at last, Declan forced his eyes open with a sharp gasp.

GASSSSPS!

He jolted upright on the mattress, breathing heavily as his hand immediately went to his chest, feeling the frantic pounding of his heart while the final moments before he lost consciousness flashed through his mind.

Then his gaze dropped to his arms.

Bandages covered them tightly, wrapping around his neck as well and holding everything firmly in place.

He tried moving his fingers, but only his pinky responded with a weak twitch.

"So I really did get my hand sliced off, huh?"

He let out a tired sigh.

"You are strong..."

Declan turned toward the voice.

A man was kneeling on a mat nearby, with a low wooden table positioned before him and an open book, a teacup, and a mug resting on its surface.

It was the weapon instructor.

His eyes were tightly shut, while his hands remained clasped together in a prayer-like position.

"...Mentally."

Declan blinked.

Was he really mentally strong?

He supposed there was some truth to that, considering this was the seventh time part of his body had been ripped off.

Five of those incidents had involved savage beasts in the jungle.

Maybe he’d simply gotten used to it.

"Thank you, I guess."

His voice came out faintly.

His attention then shifted toward the instructor’s neck, where the beaded chain that had once hung there was now gone.

"Sorry about the chain," Declan murmured.

The instructor didn’t respond.

Instead, he quietly rose to his feet and walked toward one of the bookshelves lining the wall.

The sight itself was almost strange, considering books had become rare in an age where nearly everything was stored digitally.

The instructor reached up and pulled out a small, worn booklet before returning to Declan.

Declan stood as the man extended the booklet toward him, and he looked down at its cover.

It depicted a fighter standing in a low stance, one fist pulled back toward his waist while the other was extended forward with an open palm, but where the fighter’s head should have been, the blade of a spear protruded from his neck.

"Keep it."

The instructor’s voice was simple.

Declan stared at the booklet.

A gift?

He looked back up, only to find that the instructor had already returned to his mat and was silently turning another page of his book.

In the end, Declan could only bow slightly in acknowledgment before turning toward the door.

________________________

DIIIIIIIING!

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime, and Declan stepped into the corridor, only to stop almost immediately when he saw someone standing directly in front of his dorm room, leaning casually against the railing.

The sound of the elevator caught her attention, and her pink-colored eyes lifted toward him.

"You’re finally back?"

Declan recognized her face.

"Evie?"

He barely remembered her name.

The girl immediately smiled.

"That’s meeeee..."

She dragged out the words playfully.

Declan continued toward his room, then stopped again when he noticed that Evie had shifted away from the railing and was now leaning against his door, blocking his way.

"I just wanted to say..."

She tilted her head, a bright grin spreading across her face.

"You did well today in class, Declan."

Declan raised an eyebrow.

Of course, she’d been in the class too.

He simply hadn’t noticed her amid all the chaos.

His gaze drifted toward her pink hair.

Then it clicked.

"Wait."

He pointed at her.

"You’re the blurry katana girl?"

GIGGLE.

Evie covered her mouth and giggled.

"I’m not sure about the blurry part, but I did use a katana during the training."

That confirmed it.

She was the same girl.

"You’re very fast."

Evie shrugged.

"That still didn’t make me the one who actually dealt any damage to the instructor."

She glanced toward Declan’s injured arm.

"At least you got to save your arm from being sliced off?"

Her expression softened.

"Does it hurt?"

"Does it hurt?"

Her fingers slowly moved toward his wounds, but they didn’t get far before Declan took a single step backward, stopping her from touching him.

"My pinky is fine."

He raised his hand slightly and wiggled the smallest finger.

"I guess it’ll just take some time before the rest return to normal."

Evie nodded.

Then she suddenly remembered something.

"You missed a class."

"I did!?"

Declan’s expression changed instantly as he hurriedly reached for his device, only for his eyes to widen when he saw the time.

The Weapon Class had started at 6:30 AM.

It was now...

5:32 PM.

He had been unconscious for the entire day.

And then his worst fear appeared right in front of him.

[-10 Points]

[Reason: Not Attending a Class.]

"Tch."

Of course.

They really did deduct points for missing classes, and he’d just lost another ten.

That left him with only thirty points, making his mood sour.

Then he noticed Evie still looking at him.

"Yes, I did."

"It’s a Ember Study Class," she explained. "I have the notes on my device. Actually, everyone who attended received the PDF file."

"The instructor only covered the first lesson, so it’s pretty easy to understand."

"You want it?"

She pulled out her device.

Declan noticed that hers wasn’t a foldable model like most of the students’ devices, and he briefly wondered about it before shrugging the thought away.

’Maybe there are different types.’

He was about to accept the notes, when he suddenly stopped as his brows furrowed suspiciously.

"Why are you helping me?"

He had tricked her the last time they’d met to avoid talking to her, with a major reason being his natural caution, especially since he had been worried about his new devices being stolen.

Still, he’d deliberately snubbed her.

Yet here she was, offering to help him catch up on a class.

Most people would’ve returned the favor by ignoring him.

"I don’t know."

Evie twirled a strand of pink hair around her finger before turning toward him and lowering her voice.

"Maybe because I’ve fallen for you...?"