While Lyra, Mira, and Mason disappeared into the hidden depths of the subterranean cave, the remaining candidates continued their desperate journey through the treacherous terrain of the Forgotten Realm.
The once unified mass of applicants had long since fractured into several independent groups.
Each faction chose a different heading across the map, driven by the desperate hope of finding an exit, or surviving long enough for an academy rescue force to breach the sealed boundary.
None of them knew which path led to safety.
None of them knew if safety even existed anymore.
Kael Draven walked at the absolute front of the largest formation.
Nearly one hundred and fifty students had chosen to place their lives under his leadership.
The massive, golden-scaled phantom of the Heavenly Dragon Emperor floated silently above Kael’s shoulders, its colossal eyes scanning the misty forest ahead with absolute vigilance.
“It’s… so quiet out here,” a student near the middle whispered, clutching her staff so tightly her knuckles turned white.
“I really don’t like this,” another student murmured.
“Where did all the wild beasts go?”
“Stay alert,” Kael commanded calmly, his voice easily cutting through the nervous murmurs without him ever turning his head.
“Don’t lower your guard simply because the wilderness hasn’t attacked you yet.”
His warning had barely left his lips when the dragon emperor’s voice suddenly reverberated inside his mind.
“Stop. Now.”
Kael halted instantly, his boots locking against the dirt.
The students trailing closely behind him nearly crashed into one another in a chaotic chain reaction.
“What happened?!”
“Why are we stopping?!”
“Did someone see a beast?!”
Kael slowly raised a single hand, signaling for complete silence.
His sharp, icy blue eyes swept across the seemingly serene forest ahead.
Nothing.
There was nothing there.
Just towering trees, a gentle breeze, and falling violet leaves.
Then—
A single violet leaf drifted lazily toward the mossy ground.
Before its edge could even graze the earth… the leaf vanished.
Not burned to ash.
Not sliced by a wind blade.
It simply…
‘ceased to exist’, leaving behind a slight distortion in the air.
Kael’s pupils contracted to pinpricks.
“There.”
Without a second of hesitation, Kael reached back, grabbed the shoulder of the student walking closest to the invisible boundary, and violently yanked him backward. You are reading on novelping.com, the official source.
The student stumbled in utter confusion, tumbling into the dirt.
“H-Huh?! What did I—”
BOOOOOM!!
Before he could finish his sentence, a towering, centuries-old oak tree standing three paces ahead silently split in two down its center with surgical precision.
The top multi-ton half slid sideways off the trunk before crashing into the forest floor, sending a thunderous shockwave and dust cloud ripping through the glade.
Dozens of students screamed in pure terror, scrambling backward into one another.
“Fuck! What just happened?!”
“I didn’t see an attack! What cut that tree?!”
The Heavenly Dragon Emperor narrowed its golden eyes, its rumble heavy with hidden depths within Kael’s soul.
“A spatial fracture. In simpler term, the reality in this sector is tearing apart.”
Kael’s expression turned intensely serious as he unsheathed his silver blade by an inch.
“…Everyone,” Kael commanded, his voice cold as iron.
“Be careful, No one should take another step forward.”
Several kilometers away… another group wasn’t nearly as fortunate.
Led by a proud, high-ranking noble heir named Darius, a faction of nearly thirty students had adamantly refused to follow Kael or bow to the Draven family’s authority.
“My B-Rank Thunder Leopard can detect mana fluctuations long before an ambush arrives,” Darius declared, walking with a confident, effortless stride as his glowing blue leopard prowled beside him.
“We don’t need to hide behind Kael like frightened children.”
Several noble candidates nodded in enthusiastic agreement.
After all, a B-Rank Beast Soul although not exceptionally rare, it was still not something you’ll see every year.
His confidence wasn’t entirely baseless.
Suddenly—
Rustle.
Rustle.
The dense, glowing bushes directly surrounding their path began to shake violently.
“There!” Darius smirked, pointing his finger with absolute authority.
“I see them! Attack!”
His majestic Thunder Leopard leapt forward with a crackle of lightning, its jaws open wide.
A second later… a tiny, frightened white rabbit hopped out from the leaves.
The gathered students collectively released a massive sigh of relief.
“…It was just a rabbit?” someone laughed awkwardly, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
“Man, my heart almost stopped.”
The oppressive tension eased instantly.
Then—
Without warning, the rabbit’s body expanded and exploded into a violent cloud of oily black mist.
“…Oh Shit!” Darius blinked, his smirk freezing.
The black mist didn’t dissipate.
It twisted.
It stretched.
A long, bone white skeletal arm reached out from the center of the smoke.
Then a second.
Within seconds… a grotesque abomination nearly four meters tall emerged into the sunlight.
Its body resembled a starved, elongated human wrapped in writhing shadows.
It had no eyes, no nose, and no ears—only a huge, vertical maw lined with jagged, razor like teeth that stretched all the way from its forehead down to its chest.
The students froze, horror locking their muscles in place.
“What…”
“…is…”
“…that thing?”
The abomination tilted its head with a sickening *crack*, its vertical maw twitching.
Then, it vanished.
Not moved at high speed.
It simply ‘disappeared’ from their line of sight.
A blood curdling scream echoed from the back of the formation less than a second later.
One of the nobles at the very rear was suddenly hoisted ten feet into the air by an invisible, suffocating force.
His crystal wristband flashed violently with red emergency runes, warning of fatal damage.
His terrified cry cut through the forest like a blade.
“HELP ME!! IT HAS ME—”
SNAP.
Silence.
The air cleared.
The spot where the boy had been standing was now empty.
No body.
No blood.
No trace.
Panic erupted like a shattered dam.
“RUN!!”
“EVERYONE RUN!!”
The group shattered instantly, scattering in every direction like panicked cattle.
Even Darius’ proud Thunder Leopard whimpered, its tail tucked tightly between its legs as it dissolved back into his body in pure terror.
Elsewhere in the realm…
A smaller, six person team was carefully attempting to cross a shallow, crystal-clear river.