The battlefield simulation was collapsing.
Cracks spread across the artificial sky like shattered glass.
The ruined towers trembled.
Rift Echoes glitched in and out of existence.
And at the center of it all—
Zeal Greyhound stood surrounded by black pressure that the academy's systems could not identify.
High above the arena, instructors stared in silence.
One of the academy officials finally spoke.
"…The simulation is destabilizing."
Another responded immediately.
"No. Something inside it is reacting to the student."
Instructor Vael's gaze never left Zeal.
The runic screens around the arena flickered violently.
Every reading tied to Zeal returned the same result:
ERROR
UNKNOWN AUTHORITY DETECTED
Vael narrowed his eyes.
"…So it's begun."
Below—
the Echoes no longer attacked the other students.
All of them faced Zeal.
Watching him.
Waiting.
Kyle Gale skidded backward across broken stone, wind spiraling around his arms.
"Okay, seriously—why do all the creepy things in this academy keep choosing you?!"
Zeal didn't answer.
Because he could barely hear him anymore.
The black pulse inside his body was growing stronger.
THUMP.
THUMP.
THUMP.
Every beat distorted the air around him slightly.
Chloe Ashfield noticed first.
Her smoke trembled unnaturally.
"…My authority is reacting again."
Lucius Lockwood stood several meters away, lightning dancing around his body.
But unlike the others—
he wasn't focused on the Echoes.
He was watching Zeal.
Carefully.
Like he was trying to solve something.
One of the Rift Echoes stepped forward slowly.
Its distorted face cracked open unnaturally.
Then—
it spoke.
"Calamity synchronization increasing."
The moment those words echoed—
the battlefield shook violently.
BOOOOOOM.
Cracks spread across the ground beneath Zeal's feet.
Kyle's expression changed instantly.
"That one sounded important."
Lucius finally moved.
Lightning exploded beneath him as he crossed the battlefield in a single burst of speed.
He appeared directly in front of the Echo.
BOOM.
A lightning-coated punch shattered its upper body instantly.
Fragments scattered across the ruins.
But Lucius didn't relax.
Because the Echo began reforming again.
Slowly.
Unnaturally.
Its body twisted back together like corrupted smoke.
Lucius clicked his tongue.
"…Annoying."
The Echo turned toward him.
"Lightning Authority recognized."
Then—
a pause.
"Insufficient."
Lucius' eyes narrowed.
The atmosphere around him changed immediately.
Lightning surged harder across the battlefield.
The ruined sky flashed white.
Kyle blinked.
"…Oh no."
Chloe glanced sideways.
"He's angry."
Lucius took another step forward.
"You talk too much for a failed projection."
The Echo tilted its head.
Then it pointed directly at Zeal.
"The Monarch Vessel must return."
Silence.
The words hit harder this time.
Kyle looked toward Zeal.
"…Monarch?"
Chloe's smoke froze mid-air.
Even Lucius stopped moving for half a second.
But Zeal—
his chest tightened violently.
Another vision flashed through his mind.
Chains.
Dragons.
A black throne buried beneath endless darkness.
And a voice.
"Wake."
Zeal staggered slightly.
Kyle immediately reacted.
"ZEAL!"
The black markings spread further up Zeal's arm.
Not fully transformed.
But evolving.
Scales formed along his wrist and hand.
Sharp.
Dark.
Ancient.
The Echoes suddenly knelt.
Every single one.
The battlefield went silent.
High above the arena, panic spread among the instructors.
"That's impossible—"
"Why are the Echoes bowing?!"
"The system has lost authority control!"
Vael's expression darkened.
"…Not lost."
A pause.
"…Overridden."
Below—
Lucius stared directly at Zeal now.
No arrogance.
No mockery.
Only intensity.
"…What are you?"
Zeal slowly looked up.
"I don't know."
And that was the terrifying part.
Because he wasn't lying.
The battlefield shook again.
A massive crack split through the simulation sky.
Beyond it—
something moved.
Not an Echo.
Not part of the simulation.
Something real.
Something enormous.
Chloe's smoke retracted instinctively.
"…There's something outside the simulation layer."
Kyle swallowed hard.
"Please tell me we're not summoning another monster."
No one answered.
Because the pressure arriving now was worse than before.
Far worse.
Lucius stepped forward again.
Lightning exploded around him violently.
"Move back."
Kyle frowned.
"…What?"
Lucius didn't look away from Zeal.
"I said move back."
Then—
his aura erupted.
BOOOOOOM.
Blue-white lightning covered the battlefield.
Several Echoes disintegrated instantly from the pressure alone.
Chloe narrowed her eyes slightly.
"So you finally decided to stop holding back."
Lucius ignored her.
His eyes remained fixed on Zeal.
"For days," Lucius said quietly, "everyone's been looking at you."
A pause.
"The academy."
"The instructors."
"The Rift entities."
Another step.
"But no one actually knows if you're strong."
Kyle blinked.
"…This really isn't the time for rivalry."
Lucius continued walking forward.
"But I do know one thing."
Lightning condensed around his arm.
"You're dangerous."
The air tightened instantly.
Zeal understood immediately.
Lucius wasn't attacking out of hatred.
He was testing him.
As a rival.
As a threat.
As someone standing outside the system Lucius trusted.
Zeal slowly clenched his clawed hand.
The black pulse answered immediately.
THUMP.
Lucius disappeared.
CRACK.
Lightning split the battlefield as he appeared directly in front of Zeal.
Fast.
Far faster than before.
Zeal barely reacted in time.
BOOM.
Their clash shattered the ground beneath them.
Kyle's eyes widened.
"…HE BLOCKED THAT?!"
Smoke exploded outward from Chloe's position as she shielded herself from the shockwave.
Lucius' lightning pressed harder.
Zeal's black pressure pushed back.
Two different forces.
Two different systems.
Colliding.
Lucius narrowed his eyes.
"…Interesting."
Then he accelerated again.
CRACK—BOOM—CRACK.
A barrage of lightning-fast strikes erupted across the battlefield.
Zeal blocked instinctively.
Barely.
Every impact shook his body.
Lucius was skilled.
Precise.
Not wild power.
Control.
Perfect noble combat training.
Zeal realized something immediately.
Lucius had been holding back against everyone else.
Kyle shouted from the side.
"That monster's actually serious now!"
Chloe's eyes remained locked on the fight.
"No…"
A pause.
"He's trying to force Zeal to respond."
And it was working.
The black pulse inside Zeal was becoming unstable.
His breathing grew heavier.
The markings spread higher.
Lucius struck again.
BOOM.
This time Zeal slid backward across the battlefield.
Lucius stopped.
Lightning crackled around him violently.
"…You're hesitating."
Zeal steadied himself.
"I'm trying not to lose control."
That answer changed something.
Lucius' eyes sharpened.
Then—
he smiled slightly for the first time.
Not mockery.
Excitement.
"So there is something inside you."
The black pulse surged violently.
The battlefield trembled again.
Above them—
the cracked simulation sky finally shattered completely.
And for a split second—
everyone saw it.
A gigantic dragon eye opening in the darkness beyond the simulation layer.
Watching Zeal.
Watching the arena.
Watching everything.
Silence consumed the battlefield.
Kyle's voice came out weak.
"…Tell me I'm hallucinating."
Chloe's smoke completely froze.
Lucius stared upward.
And for the first time since his introduction—
his confidence cracked slightly.
Because even he could feel it.
That presence was beyond anything inside the academy.
The eye blinked once.
And Zeal's body reacted instantly.
BOOOOOOM.
Black pressure erupted outward uncontrollably.
The battlefield collapsed.
The simulation shattered.
Reality returned violently.
Students screamed across the arena stands.
Mana barriers cracked.
Instructors rushed forward.
And at the center of the destruction—
Zeal stood surrounded by black scales spreading across half his body.
Not human.
Not monster.
Something between both.
Lucius remained standing in front of him.
Lightning still active.
Still refusing to step back.
The two stared at each other through the collapsing arena.
Rivalry.
Recognition.
And something deeper neither of them understood yet.
Then—
deep beneath the academy—
something ancient laughed for the first time in centuries.
🐉 END OF CHAPTER 9