Chapter 162: 162. New Beginnings – 1

In the southern forest of no man’s land, a heated discussion unfolded beneath the dense canopy.

Several figures stood gathered in a rough circle; the tension in the air made it unbreathable.

Shock, disbelief, and frustration showed clearly on their faces, but none more so than Marcus, whose jaw was clenched tight as he listened to Damian speak.

“All eight bases were barren,” Damian said

“They were filled with corpses and nothing else. The only common feature among them was that everybody was headless, as if someone had been collecting the heads deliberately.”

He paused briefly, letting the words sink in, before continuing.

“The killing patterns were similar across all locations. From the residual mana signatures, we could tell that gold-rank and lower-ranked battle techniques were used. However, the techniques themselves were unfamiliar to our soldiers, which means we couldn’t link them to any faction that we are familiar with, meaning it was some nice faction of Aris that we haven’t particularly interacted with much.”

Marcus’s expression darkened further as Damian finished. His fists tightened at his sides, his anger was barely contained.

Andrea, standing beside him, noticed the strain on his face and let out a quiet sigh.

“We have absolutely no idea what’s happening on Aris at this point,” she said, her voice was weighed down by concern.

“If one anomaly wasn’t enough, now we have another.”

Marcus turned toward Damian sharply. “Do you think this was the work of the Eternal Sovereign’s organization?”

Damian considered the question for a moment before answering.

“If we assume that the base where Empress Vivianne found Sara Babylon was destroyed by the White Raven or other servants of the Eternal Sovereign, then no, the destruction in the other bases was far more restrained.”

He continued, “At the site where Sara Babylon was found, the damage was extreme. We found a pit filled with mangled bodies.

The destruction there was without any restraint. Compared to that, these bases were handled with a controlled, methodical approach.”

From that, he concluded, “We inferred that their killing style is raw and unrestrained. That pattern does not match what we saw in these eight bases.”

Before anyone could respond, a sudden movement drew their attention.

Beside Aurelius, the commander of the Hounds, Number Five appeared silently.

He held a scroll in his hands and immediately dropped to one knee, presenting it with both hands.

“Master,” he said respectfully, “a message from the capital.”

Aurelius accepted the scroll without comment. Number Five then rose and stepped back several paces, resuming his place among the Hounds.

All eyes turned toward Aurelius. The weight of their gazes made him shift slightly, and a bead of sweat formed at his temples.

He ignored the attention and broke the seal on the scroll.

His eyes moved quickly over the contents.

At first, his expression remained neutral. Then his eyes widened. A moment later, his lips parted slightly in surprise.

Andrea leaned forward. “What happened?”

Aurelius lifted his head and looked around at the group.

“It’s from Rizwell Draconis, the lord of House Draconia,” he said. “He has found his son, who went missing in the same manner as the others.”

“What?” Marcus shouted, shock evident in his voice. For a brief moment, he looked as though he might snatch the scroll from Aurelius’s hands, but he restrained himself, aware of the impropriety.

Aurelius nodded. “Rizwell claims he has discovered the base where the Clayman Cult kept the captives. He has shared the location.”

His gaze hardened as he looked at everyone present. “Let’s move.”

***

William walked through the academy corridors with a tired sigh as he rubbed his neck lightly.

Katherine followed closely behind him. Her light but persistent footsteps sounded in his ears.

He felt her presence like an itch he couldn’t ignore.

Finally, he stopped and turned, irritation was clear on his face. “Stop following me!!!”

Katherine pouted, folding her arms. “Come on, don’t be so pissy.”

She leaned in slightly, a playful glint in her eyes. “~I had a really good time with you~”

William shook his head subtly, looking away. “I should’ve thrown you into the lava pit.”

He didn’t wait for her response and started walking again, his pace quickened.

Katherine followed without hesitation, clearly enjoying his irritation.

“Was my master’s silence not enough,” William muttered under his breath, “that I need another headache now?”

[Ah, this witch sucked mah boy dry.]

“Shut up,” William snapped quietly, frustration slipping into his voice.

A sudden thought crossed his mind, and he stopped abruptly, turning to face Katherine again.

His expression was sharp and dangerous. “If news of our deal reaches Sera, you’re so dead.”

Katherine blinked, then laughed. “Sera is like my sister. It’s only natural that I borrow her things.”

William’s jaw tightened.

[She’s a rage baiter.]

William took a deep breath, clearly restraining himself, then resumed walking, this time at an even faster pace.

One more exchange with her, and he wasn’t sure whether he’d die from a stroke or might strangle her.

Katherine matched his pace easily, clearly having the time of her life, provoking him.

As their silent cat-mouse chase continued, a few familiar figures appeared ahead.

Galeion, Ethan, and Leila were walking toward them from the opposite direction.

William stopped suddenly in front of them, startling the group.

“William!” Leila exclaimed. “When did you return? How are you?”

Her questions barely left her mouth before William’s gaze flickered impatiently. “I’m busy, Leila. We’ll talk later.”

“William, I need to talk to you privately,” Ethan said quickly, stepping forward.

“Busy,” William replied curtly, then turned his attention to Galeion.

“Want to spar?”

Galeion’s face lit up with a grin. “Sure. When?”

“Right now.”

“Weren’t you busy?” Leila asked, confused.

“Yeah,” William replied, already grabbing Galeion by the arm, “busy sparring with Galeion.”

Before either Ethan or Leila could react, William had already dragged Galeion away down the corridor, leaving the two staring after them in stunned silence.

A moment later, Katherine appeared in front of Ethan and Leila, as if nothing unusual had happened. “Hey guys, what’s up? Have you seen William?”

“He was just here,” Ethan replied uncertainly.

“Oh?” Katherine said, scanning around. “Where did he go?”

As she spoke, something shimmered in her vision. Her eyes locked onto Leila’s earrings.

“Leila,” Katherine said sharply, excitement creeping into her voice, “where did you get those?”

Leila smiled proudly. “My mother gave me a whole collection like this. Want to come to my room and see?”

Katherine nodded enthusiastically. “Yes!”

Leila turned to Ethan, cupped his face gently, and smiled. “I’ll meet you in the evening.”

“Okay,” Ethan replied with a soft smile, watching as the two girls walked away together.

Left alone, Ethan let out a slow breath and adjusted his posture. It had been a week since he last trained properly, and his hands were itching to move.

He turned and headed toward the training area, his mind already anticipating practicing the third form of the Tempest Sword Technique he had been meaning to start learning.

As he walked, a familiar but quite unexpected figure stepped into his path.

“Maximus?” Ethan said in alarm, staring at the disheveled figure standing before him.

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