Chapter 287: Second Week [3]

Chapter 286

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Episode 75 - Second Week [3]

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Clank!

A statue fell to the ground, and a scroll emerged from inside it.

A hand reached out and grabbed it. Immediately, silver-colored mana surged from his hand.

Then, he tore the scroll in half, and suddenly, his figure disappeared.

In the blink of an eye, he had appeared somewhere else.

The cold wind of the surroundings quickly began freezing Lumina.

She immediately channeled her mana to adjust her body temperature.

Then, her pale blue eyes swept across the surroundings, while her moon-white hair swayed gently in the wind.

".....?"

Suddenly, Lumina recognized the presence of someone very familiar.

However, she frowned when she sensed another presence.

’That damn mosquito again.’

Whoosh!

Lumina’s figure disappeared, and in the blink of an eye, she covered a thousand meters in less than a second.

When she stopped and appeared behind the duo, the blond-haired boy immediately turned his head and looked at her.

"....."

Lumina briefly observed him before shifting her gaze, her brows furrowed, toward the bloodsucking mosquito.

His fangs, crimson eyes, and hair as white as snow would undoubtedly attract anyone’s attention.

However, in Lumina’s eyes, Very’Daal was nothing more than a bloodsucking mosquito with an unpleasant personality.

On the other hand, the moment Lumina appeared, Very’Daal recognized her immediately.

A mischievous smile curled up on his lips.

"Oh, my, if it isn’t the supposedly greatest talent in history, Miss Lumina Moonlight."

"......"

Lumina’s expression changed from a simple frown to one of outright fury.

If any cadet from the Holy Academy had seen that expression, they probably would have thought the end of the world had arrived.

Lumina, who was known for never showing even the slightest hint of emotion, now wore an expression of genuine anger.

She wasn’t annoyed by Very’Daal’s comment. Rather, simply hearing his voice was enough to immediately bring back memories from her 9,999th regression.

As a result, her already angry expression became even more furious.

"Hello, why are you looking at me like you’re about to kill everyone?"

"That’s exactly what I want to do right now."

"......"

The response caught Very’Daal off guard for a moment before he let out a quiet laugh.

"Haha, I thought you were mute. Although, judging by your expression, it seems you didn’t like that. I don’t remember doing anything to you. This is the first time we’ve met face-to-face."

"......"

However, in Lumina’s mind, the answer came immediately.

’But I know you very well, you damn mosquito.’

Receiving no response whatsoever, Very’Daal adopted a thoughtful expression.

"Mhm, why does it seem like you hate me? Let’s see... There are very few reasons, considering this is the first time we’ve spoken... Mhm."

Very’Daal glanced at the blond-haired boy for a second before turning his gaze back toward Lumina.

"......."

It was only a fleeting thought, but she didn’t believe it could possibly be true.

’Huh, I never see this guy chatting with anyone. Looks like he doesn’t have any friends and...’

She looked at Lumina and thought:

’She doesn’t look like the type to talk to anyone either.’

In conclusion, in Very’Daal’s eyes, the duo standing before him were what people called "friendless."

His lips parted as he voiced what he had initially thought.

"Hey, don’t tell me you two are..."

However, before he could finish his sentence...

Whoosh!

Lumina’s figure disappeared without a trace.

The next instant, Very’Daal felt something sharp pressed against his neck.

"......"

He lowered his gaze and saw that the object pressed against his neck was the blade of a sword.

At that moment, his wide-open eyes reflected a strange emotion.

His lips curled into a crazed smile, as if the mere thought of having his head severed from his body amused him.

But just then, Ryn’Syra’s voice echoed in his mind.

’Very, I recommend that you be careful with that girl. Not only is she a Six-Star Awakened, but she has also awakened the Divine Body, and even I am not confident that I could so much as scratch her.’

".....!?"

Surprise surfaced within Very’Daal.

Ryn’Syra was the strongest spirit he had at that point.

An Ancestral Spirit.

She was comparable to a Seven- or Eight-Star Awakened, and Ryn’Syra was the latter.

If even she said she wasn’t confident in facing Lumina, it meant the strength of the girl before him was terrifying.

But then...

’Wait, you said Divine Body.’

Ryn’Syra nodded.

’Yes, that’s what I said.’

"......."

Very’Daal’s memories returned to seven months ago.

He had heard that someone had infiltrated the Chosen One’s Palace and made their way to the Dream Sanctuary.

This had happened while his mother was away on matters related to the World Congress.

According to the reports, not only had the intruder managed to escape, but the Dream and Desire Tree itself had given him the Essence of the Divine.

For that reason, when his mother returned from the World Congress, she didn’t try to search for the intruder. Instead, she decided to put the matter aside.

’So the intruder was Lumina Moonlight.’

A strange smile appeared on his face.

He looked into Lumina’s pale blue eyes, which resembled an endless ocean illuminated by moonlight.

Then, he spoke in a low voice:

"You’re the intruder, aren’t you?"

Lumina met Very’Daal’s crimson gaze with her pale blue eyes, but she didn’t answer. Her expression didn’t change in the slightest, either.

Instead, she withdrew her sword and said:

"If you say a single word in front of him, I’ll cut your head off."

Then...

Whoosh!

Lumina’s figure suddenly disappeared.

Her presence vanished completely, leaving behind not the slightest trace.

"....!?"

Very’Daal couldn’t hide her disbelief.

Then, she turned her gaze toward the blond-haired boy, but...

"....."

Without her realizing it, he had also disappeared at some point, leaving Very’Daal alone in the middle of a completely white, frozen wasteland.

Very’Daal was the only person left there.

’Wait, when did he leave?’

On the other hand, a smile appeared on her face as she recalled Lumina’s final words.

"How fun. Emotionless people always have a side you don’t know about."

She burst into laughter, her laughter echoing across the wasteland, though no one could hear it.

In any case, if someone had heard her laughter at that moment, they probably would have thought some crazy woman was laughing all by herself.

But Very’Daal didn’t care in the slightest whether anyone was watching her.

***

The days passed quickly.

The three days in the Great Labyrinth came to an end, and then the remaining three days of the second week passed in the blink of an eye.

It was around five in the afternoon on the sixth day of the second week.

Just like during the first week, the cadets headed to the plaza in front of the Academy’s main building, where the updated Academic Exchange rankings had been posted.

The cadets gathered in groups as they made their way over to check whether their ranks had gone up or down.

Others simply wanted to see whether they had managed to make it into the top fifty.

After all, only fifty cadets from both Academies would be able to advance to the third week.

Without needing to get any closer, I took a seat on a bench and waited for a few seconds.

Shortly afterward, my master’s voice echoed in my mind:

’There weren’t many changes among the top ten compared to the first week. On the other hand, your rank is now 14th.’

’Rank 14, huh.’

I hadn’t expected to climb from 21st to 14th.

The change had occurred in the Great Labyrinth, specifically on the 15th floor, when I entered a place that turned out to be a shortcut to the 21st floor.

Since I couldn’t return to the 15th floor, I ended up receiving more bonus points than I had originally planned to obtain.

In any case, I still hadn’t attracted too much attention, although some cadets who didn’t know Ivan occasionally glanced at me.

However, most of the attention remained focused on Ranks 10 and 1, especially Ranks 1 and 2, occupied by Princess Very’Daal and Clana.

For some reason, the cadets had split into two groups, each supporting their respective princess.

The competition between the two groups was truly fierce.

Regardless, now that I had the results from the second week...

The second week was finally over.

’Now I only have four days left to complete the Main Mission.’

In four days, the final day of the third week would arrive.

The third week consisted of only three days, and today was Saturday.

’I have the key piece in my hands, so I’ll be able to complete the mission much more easily.’

Since there was nothing else for me to do in the Academy plaza, I used Spatial Movement and teleported to the dormitory building.