The teary-eyed Rosanne boarded the academy's plane as they departed Oakhaven.
She had barely spent any meaningful time with Alistair and had to depart back to the Academy already.
Alistair waved her off, watching the plane rise into the horizon.
There was much to do; the monster horde at dawn was by far one of the largest attacks since the tier 7 emergence a decade ago.
Alistair booked a flight, heading to Colombia, where Sloane and Isolde had been stationed against the beasts and the Solarian's continued offensive.
**
The gang arrived back at the academy, exhausted from the protracted battle against the horde of beasts.
They went back to their dormitory rooms to rest while Markus headed to debrief with Elder Ke Xin.
Markus stood before the glowing digital kiosks of the Mission Hall, his presence causing a subtle ripple in the air that made nearby students instinctively step aside.
He didn't look at the Tier 1 or Tier 2 boards anymore; those felt like child's play.
His eyes scanned the Restricted Section—missions meant for veteran squads and military detachments.
He could feel the weight of the Blackwell name, and the secret of his Primordial blood, pressing against his chest.
He didn't need a tournament to prove he was the best; he needed a challenge that would make his 4cm core crack and grow.
Markus omitted the details of his meeting with the Tier 8 Demigod beast, but included the mission details on the beast horde battle and the team's scouting report.
**
The following day, Markus headed to the simulation chamber, training in sword styles from past graduates.
Markus sparred with a former instructor named Lan; his one-handed sword style was unlike any other.
It cut through shadows.
He wasn't concerned about beating Markus; his techniques were honed to kill.
Aimed at vital points to maim and sever, its ultimate intention is death at all costs.
His digital projection willingly took damage to inflict more grievous wounds.
Sacrifice for a greater cause.
New Ability
[Void Strike]
Markus learnt to strike from the unseen void, learning from the same underlying principles as Instructor Lan.
The next projection, a former graduate Kirito, is wielding two one-handed swords.
Utilizing two one-handed swords provided an additional avenue of offence and defence simultaneously.
The thrust and deflect method pushed Markus to his limits, forcing him to use spatial abilities to deflect and maneuver around the simulation chamber.
Kirito pushed forward with his signature sword skill, Starburst Stream, a 16-hit sword skill that defeated Markus.
The intensity and speed of the sword strikes compensated for its lack of power.
After 4 hours of nonstop training, Markus took a lunch break, meeting up with his group to discuss future plans before the interschool competition.
**
"Saylor has been dominating the combat class this morning, Big bro!" Rosanne grumbled, "Thankfully, the professor stepped in to prevent any injuries that would result in a visit to the infirmary."
"Do not engage Saylor in combat in the foreseeable future, I sense something is wrong with him," Markus inputted, "There's a dark aura around him I can't seem to put a finger on."
"I'll be spending more time meditating and going on solo portal runs. You four girls should focus on tier 1 runs without taking much damage."
"When you are confident in clearing tier 1 portals, I'll ask the headmistress to elevate your permissions to tier 2."
Markus remarked, finding the food in the dining hall boring.
After travelling across the Valerian Empire and exploring its unique local cuisines, he has developed a taste for fine dining.
After clearing out his plate grudgingly, Markus messed with Rosanne's hair and left for his dorm room.
**
Markus withdrew the tier 7 beast carcass that was gifted to him by the tier 8 demigod.
"Nagini, lunch."
Nagini stretched her maw, devouring the tier 7 carcass as a whole.
Its stomach was a separate spatial dimension on its own.
Having devoured a high-tiered beast, Nagini slithered onto Markus's bed and went into hibernation.
She had to spend a considerable amount of time to digest the potent blood essence as well as to break down its mana core.
Markus surrounded Nagini with pillows and blankets to keep her warm and comfortable.
(It's my time to meditate, time to aim for 50% spatial mastery.)
Markus reflected on the past few days and his experiences in the double dungeon.
The aura emitted from the tier 8 demigod.
Nagini's manipulation of space.
His understanding of laws underwent a quantitative transformation.
[Space is rarely one layer.]
[The Material plane in which all lives exist.]
[Sub-Space where Storage Rings and Inventory exist.]
[Law of Space: 30%]
..
[Law of Space: 35%]
..
[Law of Space:40%]
**
Markus completed his meditation session, his mind stretched thin, his body lacking nutrition.
He ripped several packs of combat rations and devoured them in minutes.
----------------------------------------------------------
Name: Markus Blackwell
Age: 10
Class: Void Apprentice
Affinities: Space (L), Time (L)(Sealed), Fate (EX)
Health: 22,000/22,000
Mana: 40,000/40,000
Level: 41
Strength: 130
Agility: 130
Constitution: 130
Intelligence: 200
Available free attributes: 0
Laws: Space (40.00%)
Active Skills:
Spatial Slash (4x)
Void Severance (4x)
Spatial Bubble (4x)
Spatial Domain
Spatial Detonation
Sword Skills:
Vorpal Strike
Meteor Strike
Spatial Ascension
Legacy Skills:
[Legacy of Sagittarius]
Starlight Bow
Passive Skills:
Body refinement (Tier 3)
Void Perception
Dimensional Inventory (100 x 100 sqm)
Fate's Eye
Equipment:
Heavenly Scriptures of Space
Key to the Temple of Space
Valerian Academy Student Badge
Aurelian Royal Family Crest
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 3)
Dimensional Storage Ring (Tier 1)
Prayer Cushion
----------------------------------------------------------
Markus reached his core limit, 40% of Spatial mastery was his current ceiling.
He felt like he could progress further, but the size of his core restricts any further progression.
Markus closed his eyes as he drifted into the unknown, the night claiming him into the void of the mind.
**
The following morning, the alarm sounded, dragging Markus into a new day.
He checked his communication watch, then responded to Grandma Isolde and Grandpa Sloane before tending to others.
[Alistair has flown over and informed us on current events. We have made plans with NOVUS. Stay safe, my baby boy. - love Grandma]
[The border regions are boring. Visit us sometime, will ya? - Grandpa Sloane]
Markus chuckled, setting a reminder for himself to head back to the Blackwell estate to check on plans made with NOVUS.
They could not discuss sensitive information through digital communications.
Foreign and domestic powers could always compromise technology.
Looking at his watch, 2 weeks had already passed, and the inter-school tournaments were about to start.
(I don't know if I should even participate in the tournaments, as it won't even be fair to the other students.)
Unless they could produce a first-year tier-4 prodigy, I'm probably going to sweep the first-place rewards.
Markus headed back to his favourite place in the academy, the mission halls, to browse for missions.