Chapter 228: The Fight Starts

Ron and Jax stood frozen for half a second after Seris’s voice echoed through the academy.

Under attack.

The words didn’t register immediately.

Then Ron’s eyes sharpened.

“Lia. Selene,” he said instantly. “We have to go to the student residence. If they attacked the academy, they’ll target the students.”

Jax nodded. “Yeah.”

Ron reached into his size-reducing bag and pulled out his black spear. The weapon expanded to full length in his grip, the tip glowing faintly red as mana flowed through it.

They started running.

Halfway across the courtyard, Jax suddenly stopped mid-stride.

“…Shit.”

Ron glanced at him. “What?”

“I didn’t bring my guns!”

Ron nearly tripped. “Jax—!”

Jax shot back defensively, “What?! I didn’t think some evil bastard would attack the top academy in the continent!”

Even as he argued, he bent down and scooped up several small pebbles from the ground.

“I can use these for now,” he said quickly. “Our residence building comes before the girls’. We grab my guns first—then we head there.”

Ron clenched his jaw but nodded. “Fine. Move.”

They sprinted.

As they reached the student residence building, they saw two injured students on the ground, trembling. In front of them stood two hooded figures—the same type who had launched the purple attacks.

One held a sword.

The other was unarmed.

They were about to finish the students.

Ron didn’t hesitate.

His spear flared bright red.

“Flaming Spear: Flaming Stab!”

He lunged with explosive speed and force. The spear’s fiery tip tore through the air—but the hooded swordsman twisted and narrowly dodged.

Ron landed between the attackers and the injured students.

“Run!” he shouted.

The two students scrambled away without hesitation.

The hooded swordsman tilted his head.

“Well… we have a little hero here.”

The second hooded man started moving toward the fleeing students—

Whoosh.

A glowing pebble shot past his face.

He turned.

Jax stood several meters away, arm still extended.

“Not so easy, hooded bastard.”

The hooded man chuckled. “Ah. Another little hero.”

He glanced toward the injured students, then back at Jax.

“They were broken anyway. Fine. Come fight me.”

Jax got into a stance—

Then suddenly turned and ran.

The hooded man blinked. “What?”

His expression twisted. “You little—!”

“I’m going after him,” he growled.

The swordsman nodded, eyes still locked on Ron.

And the two battles split.

—

Jax sprinted toward the residence building and burst inside.

Heavy footsteps followed.

The hooded man entered after him.

While running, Jax casually dropped one of the pebbles behind him.

The hooded man stepped directly on it.

A burst of intense white light exploded upward.

“My eyes—!” he roared, clutching his face. “You little bitch!”

Jax didn’t stop running. “Damn it, he’s still fast!”

He reached his room door.

“Found it!”

He slapped his card against the lock.

Click.

The door unlocked—but before he could enter—

A blur from the side.

A heavy kick slammed into his torso.

“Argh—!”

Jax was flung backward, crashing into the wall.

The hooded man stepped forward.

“You little bastard. How’s that feel?”

Jax coughed, raising a shaky hand.

“I—I surrender.”

The hooded man smirked. “Now that’s more like—”

“Or not.”

The hooded man frowned slightly.

Jax opened his palm.

A pebble dropped to the floor.

The hooded man’s eyes widened.

He immediately shut his eyes tightly.

Nothing happened.

He opened one eye cautiously.

“…What?”

And in that exact moment—

Jax slid low between his legs and launched an upward punch with all his strength.

Direct hit.

The hooded man’s eyes bulged.

Jax stood up and muttered calmly, “Crotch shot.”

As the hooded man instinctively opened his eyes in pain—

Jax smashed another pebble against the floor.

This time—

Blinding white light exploded.

“Not again—!”

Jax didn’t waste a second.

He rushed into his room.

On a small table near the entrance—his twin guns rested exactly where he left them.

Behind him, the hooded man recovered quickly and stormed inside.

He saw Jax standing near the table.

“Nowhere to run, huh?” he sneered.

He charged.

Jax slowly turned.

One gun already raised.

The hooded man frowned.

“A gun? You ran for—”

Bang.

The shot cut him off.

A clean hole appeared in the center of the hooded man’s forehead.

He collapsed instantly.

Silence.

Jax exhaled slowly.

He blew lightly at the barrel of the gun.

“And that,” he muttered, “is why you were an idiot not me.”

The body hit the floor with a dull thud.

And the fight outside was still raging.

Outside, Ron was already mid-fight.

The hooded swordsman rushed him again, blade flashing with violent purple mana. Ron met him head-on. Their weapons clashed, sparks and heat bursting into the air.

But something felt off.

Ron narrowed his eyes.

His mana… it’s unstable.

The hooded man swung wildly, powerful but unbalanced. Ron pivoted, stepped in, and deliberately ruined his footing with a low sweep.

The moment the hooded man staggered—

Ron moved.

Flaming Spear: Flaming Stab.

The black spear ignited red. In one clean thrust, Ron drove it straight through the man’s chest. The fiery tip burned through cloth, flesh, and bone in a single motion.

The hooded man froze, then went limp.

Ron pulled the spear out and exhaled.

Footsteps approached.

Jax stepped out from the building, twin guns in his holster.

Ron glanced at him. “Took you long.”

Jax tossed something toward him. Ron caught it.

Basic black armor—light training armor from the residence armory.

“I was trying to find my armor ,” Jax said. “Your room was locked. So I just grabbed this from the training room. We can’t fight without protection.”

Ron nodded and slipped it on over his white T-shirt.

“Let’s go.”

They started moving—

Then suddenly—

Violet orbs rained from the sky.

“Hide!” Ron shouted.

They dove behind a stone wall just as explosions slammed into the ground. Shockwaves rolled across the courtyard.

The barrage stopped.

Ron and Jax immediately sprinted forward—

Only to stop short.

Three hooded figures stood ahead of them.

“…Shit,” Ron muttered.

Jax looked back.

Three more appeared behind them.

“Where the hell are they even coming from?” Jax said.

They raised their weapons—

Then suddenly—

Orange rune-ropes shot forward and bound the three behind them tightly.

Before the hooded figures could react—

A green flash streaked past.

Three heads lifted clean off their shoulders.

They hit the ground a second later.

Lia Isolde stood there, dusk-pink eyes sharp, golden-brown hair tied in a high ponytail. Her white single-edged chokuto rested at her side, faintly glowing.

Behind her stood Selene Raynhart, midnight-blue hair flowing, wand-staff raised. Orange runes still flickered around the remaining bound enemies.

Ron and Jax both shouted at once.

“Lia!”

“Selene!”

The remaining hooded attackers turned toward the new threat—

That was their mistake.

Jax fired with both of his gun.

Ron hurled his flaming spear.

All three fell instantly.

Lia walked over to Ron. “Are you alright?”

“Just some injuries from the explosions,” Ron said.

On the other side, Selene rushed to Jax.

“Jax, your stomach—did someone kick you? Let me heal you!”

Jax waved her off. “Nah, save your mana. I’m fine.”

Then—

Ding. Ding.

A small chibi figure popped into existence between them.

William the manager…

Manager of their system.

“Battle bond meter has filled to 10%!” he chirped.

They all blinked.

A glowing window appeared in front of them.

Battle Bond Meter: 10% Filled

Buffs Activated:

– Full Recovery

– Minor resistance to Corrupted Mana

– +20% Physical Stats

– +15% Mana Output

All four of them suddenly glowed. Wounds closed. Fatigue vanished. Their bodies felt lighter, stronger.

Jax flexed his fingers. “Okay… this system was quiet for so long I thought it was just a joke aside from William. But in a real fight… it actually works.”

Selene looked at the floating chibi. “William… what is corrupted mana?”

—

On the other side of the academy grounds—outside the main building—

Seris Velmira stood alone.

Her deep, dark green hair fell in a precise wave-cut bob, almost black under the dim sky, but flashing emerald whenever stray magic flared nearby. Her jade-flecked eyes were sharp and calculating behind matte black, thick-framed glasses. The Astralis Arcanum insignia shimmered faintly on her high-collared formal robes.

Above her, something exploded with a violent boom.

She looked up once.

Earlier, Acting Vice-Chairman Aldren Sagewell had flown off to intercept the three leaders of the attackers.

Now the battlefield had split into chaos.

Seris lowered her gaze.

“I have to go,” she murmured. “I need to save my sister.”

Footsteps.

Dozens of hooded figures emerged from between the academy pillars, advancing toward her in formation.

Seris slowly removed her glasses.

She folded them carefully and slipped them into her robe pocket.

Then she took a deep breath.

The outer robe fell from her shoulders.

Underneath, she wore sleeveless grey combat armor—light but reinforced, shaped for movement. Her lean, trained physique was fully visible now, no longer hidden behind administrative robes.

She stepped forward.

Her stance shifted.

Anyone who had seen Lucen Merrith fight would recognize it immediately—the same grounded balance, the same disciplined coiling of power.

Then—

She vanished.

She reappeared directly in front of the advancing hooded squad.

“Third Circle Spell.”

Her palms slammed together.

“Thunderclap Barrage.”

A deafening explosion erupted.

A 15-meter cone of sonic shockwaves and branching lightning bolts blasted forward. The ground cracked. Armor shattered. Hooded figures were hurled backward mid-air, disoriented and screaming as arcs of electricity crawled across their bodies.

Before the smoke settled—

Seris was already moving.

She stepped through the chaos and drove a precise kick into one attacker’s jaw. Bone snapped. The body collapsed.

“Third Circle spell.”

She raised one hand.

“Sparkneedle Volley.”

A compact sphere of yellow lightning condensed in her palm—then shattered into dozens of razor-thin electric needles.

She flicked her hand.

The lightning needles shot forward in tight formation, piercing through one hooded attacker’s chest—then continuing straight through into the one behind him.

Two bodies fell together.

Another turned to run—

A flash.

Seris appeared behind him and struck his spine with a short-range lightning burst.

In less than ten minutes—

Fifty hooded attackers lay scattered across the courtyard.

Burned. Broken. Motionless.

Seris stood in the middle of it all, breathing steadily. Small arcs of lightning still crackled faintly along her arms before fading.

She picked up her discarded robe without putting it back on.

Then she turned toward the student residence building.

Her expression hardened.

“I’m coming Iselde and students,” she whispered.

And she ran.

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