Chapter 489: The Upper Realm (XV)

The moment Gray stepped through the sealed passage, the silver barriers surrounding the two princesses began to fade.

Scarlett was the first to notice him.

"Gray!"

She immediately rushed forward, her crimson hair swaying behind her as she approached.

Elira followed a moment later, although her usual playful expression had been replaced by A WORRIED ONE.

"Gray, are you alright?" Scarlett asked, looking him over.

"What happened in there? We felt the entire structure react several times, and then everything went quiet."

Elira folded her arms, examining his face.

"More importantly, what took you so long? We were starting to wonder whether something had happened to you."

Gray stopped in front of them and casually raised his hands.

"Relax. Nothing happened."

"Nothing?" Scarlett frowned.

"Well, there was a monster."

Both princesses stared at him.

"A monster?" Elira repeated.

"Mhm. Some sort of guardian beast hiding inside the chamber. It seemed to have taken an interest in me, so I dealt with it."

Gray spoke as casually as though he were explaining why he had taken a little longer to finish breakfast.

Scarlett’s eyes narrowed.

"And you killed it?"

"Of course."

"By yourself?"

"Would you have preferred I called for help?"

"That’s not what I meant!" Scarlett snapped, visibly irritated by his response.

"You disappeared behind a sealed door, the whole structure started reacting, and we had no idea what was happening! At least give us a proper explanation!"

Gray blinked, and suddenly smiled teasingly:

"Awww~. Were you worried about me, Princess?"

Scarlett’s cheeks gained a faint red tint.

"Don’t change the subject!"

Elira giggled, though the relief in her expression was obvious.

"Well, I’m glad you’re alright. I was beginning to think we’d have to break through those barriers ourselves."

"How touching."

Gray glanced between them.

"Anyway, I’m perfectly fine. Not a single scratch."

Scarlett seemed unconvinced.

She stepped closer, looking over his shoulders and arms, checking for injuries. After confirming he wasn’t hiding any obvious wounds, her gaze suddenly stopped.

"Wait."

"What?" Gray raised an eyebrow.

Scarlett pointed toward the side of his neck.

"What’s that?"

Elira leaned closer.

"Oh?"

Gray’s expression remained unchanged for a moment, but just then, he noticed the way both princesses were staring at the same spot.

"What’s what?"

"Your neck," Scarlett replied.

"There’s something there..."

Gray lifted a hand and touched the side of his neck. His fingers brushed against a slightly raised mark beneath his ear.

He frowned.

"Is there?"

Elira stepped around him to get a better look.

"Yes. It looks like a tattoo."

"A tattoo?"

"Mhm. A black rose, I think."

Gray turned slightly, allowing her to inspect the mark.

It was a small tattoo.

A black rose had been drawn against his pale skin, its petals tightly arranged around a dark centre.

Thin thorn-like lines extended from its stem, curving naturally along the side of his neck.

Scarlett examined it with a suspicious expression.

"Since when do you have a tattoo?"

Gray didn’t answer immediately.

He pressed his fingers against the mark, trying to sense whether there was any foreign energy attached to it.

Nothing obvious.

He circulated a small amount of Mana through the area and inspected the mark with his [Spirit Eyes].

Still nothing.

Yet, he had a rather unpleasant suspicion about its origin.

His expression gradually darkened.

’...Did I seriously get marked by my own mother?’

For a few seconds, Gray remained motionless.

’What kind of mother leaves a mark on her son without even asking?’

He slowly lowered his hand.

’And a black rose? Seriously?’

Inside his body, Jasmine suddenly burst into laughter.

[Pfft! Hahahaha!]

’Not a single word from you...’ Gray’s eyebrow twitched.

[I haven’t said anything yet!]

’You’re already laughing...’

[I find the situation amusing. That’s all.]

’Then find something else amusing.’

[A black rose, Gray? Your mother has quite the taste.]

Gray ignored her.

Scarlett was still staring at the tattoo.

"Gray, are you listening?"

"Yes."

"Do you know where it came from?"

"Not particularly."

"Not particularly?"

"Perhaps the monster left it behind."

Elira tilted her head.

"Monsters leave tattoos now?"

"Some of them have rather strange abilities."

Scarlett gave him an unimpressed look.

"You’re making that up."

"Am I?"

"Yes."

"Then I suppose you’ll have to forgive me. I’m still recovering from my terrifying battle with the monster." Gray smiled innocently, even batting his eyelashes at her.

Elira giggled.

"You’re impossible."

Scarlett sighed, although her eyes lingered on the black rose for a little longer.

"Fine. We’ll discuss your strange tattoo later. Right now, we should decide what to do next."

Gray glanced around the ancient chamber.

The silver-black walls, the strange formations, the sealed passage, and the various remnants of the academy’s old structure.

They had explored quite a bit already.

The reception hall had given them orientation badges.

The corridor had nearly crushed them with a trap. The mirror chamber had revealed their desires, and the training room had contained a few useful techniques and treasures.

Atrinae had also obtained several energy crystals containing spiritual vitality and ancient beast blood.

’Not bad...’

But compared to the treasures Gray had hoped to find, the results were rather disappointing.

The Undying Snake’s Orb was nowhere to be seen, and while the ancient academy contained plenty of valuable materials, most of them weren’t worth delaying his cultivation.

Gray looked at the two princesses.

"Well, we have two choices."

Elira raised an eyebrow.

"Which are?"

"We either continue exploring, or we leave."

Scarlett glanced at him.

"That’s a rather straightforward decision."

"Naturally. I’ve always appreciated simple choices."

"And which one do you prefer?"

Gray looked toward the deeper corridors and sighed.

"Honestly? Leaving."

Both princesses stared at him.

"Leaving?" Elira repeated.

"Mhm."

"But we haven’t explored the entire academy yet," Scarlett pointed out. "There might be other chambers with valuable treasures."

"True."

"Then why leave?"

"Because we haven’t found anything particularly precious so far." Gray shrugged.

Scarlett frowned.

"The techniques and materials we collected are still valuable."

"I never said they weren’t."

He casually adjusted his robe.

"But I’ve already spent enough time here. The resources we found aren’t worth sacrificing my cultivation time."

Elira blinked.

"Your cultivation time?"

"Yes."

Gray looked at her as though the answer should have been obvious.

"Every hour spent wandering around these corridors is another hour I could spend cultivating. And considering the amount of resources I need to make meaningful progress, wasting time isn’t exactly appealing."

Scarlett crossed her arms.

"You were the one who insisted on exploring this place."

"Because I expected something worthwhile to be hidden inside."

"And now?"

"Now I have a better understanding of the place."

Gray smiled.

"An unsuccessful investment is still an investment. The important part is knowing when to stop."

Elira covered her mouth, suppressing a laugh.

"You’re treating an ancient academy like a business venture."

"Why shouldn’t I? Everything has a value, Princess."

Scarlett shook her head.

"You’re unbelievable."

"Thank you."

"That wasn’t praise."

"I’ll accept it anyway."

A small nine-colored snake suddenly emerged from the space near Gray’s shoulder. Atrinae coiled around his neck, her little head rising beside his cheek.

(Master! More treasures!)

Gray glanced at her.

"Where?"

Atrinae pointed her tail toward one of the deeper corridors.

(Over there!)

Gray looked in the direction she indicated.

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"Oh?"

Scarlett immediately noticed his reaction.

"You said we were leaving."

"I did."

"Then why are you looking over there?"

Gray smiled at Atrinae and gently rubbed her little head.

"Because my daughter seems to have found something."

Atrinae puffed out her chest proudly.

(Master! I found it!)

Elira laughed.

"Well, I suppose our departure will have to wait."

Gray sighed.

’...One more room, then.’

He glanced at the black rose tattoo on his neck before pushing the matter aside.

Whatever his mother had done, he would investigate it later. He had no intention of allowing an unexplained mark to distract him from his goals.

First, the remaining rooms... hopefully he would find the Undying’s Snake Orb for Atrinae as her evolution would help him quite a ton.

Gray followed Atrinae’s directions, with Scarlett and Elira walking behind him.

The deeper they ventured into the ancient academy, the denser the surrounding Mana became.

The walls gradually changed from silver-black metal to a strange material resembling polished white stone, with faint golden lines running through its surface.

Those lines formed an elaborate network of inscriptions, all directing the surrounding energy toward the same destination.

Gray glanced at the markings.

’An energy-gathering formation?’

He activated his [Spirit Eyes], observing how the Mana flowed through the walls and disappeared beneath the floor.

The formation was still functioning after all these years, although several sections appeared damaged.

"Interesting..."

Elira looked at him.

"Have you found something?"

"Not yet. But the formation seems to be gathering energy from the surrounding area and transporting it somewhere ahead."

Scarlett glanced down the corridor.

"Then perhaps there’s an important chamber at the end."

"That’s what I’m thinking."

Atrinae, meanwhile, had become increasingly restless.

Her small body moved around Gray’s neck, and her nine-colored scales reflected the faint golden light coming from the walls.

(Master! Hurry! Hurry! I can feel something!)

Gray gently tapped her head.

"Calm down. We’re almost there."

(But it’s calling me!)

"Something is calling you?"

(Mhm! It feels familiar!)

"Well, that’s interesting..." Gray exchanged a glance with the two princesses.