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A confrontation with the Aquiline students.

The heroism they had when they boldly entered the Demon Dungeon had, at some point, completely withered away.

And the one responsible for crushing their heroism —

That was me.

Just moments ago, I killed ten people with my own hands.

Card, without hesitation, also killed four students.

As a result, none of the students dared to step forward against us.

None of them wanted to die.

Heroes are defined by the moment when they must risk death to stand their ground.

Whether they can make that choice or not determines whether they are a hero.

Among them, there were no heroes.

There were only puppets moving under orders.

Even though I killed kids around my own age, I didn’t feel any guilt.

Partly because I recognized them as enemies — but mostly because of the overwhelming calmness I felt.

My emotions had been worn away by the shroud’s bandages.

Thanks to Seron, I had managed to recover some of my anger, but the rest of my emotions were still missing.

When I have people I cherish, I can manage fine.

Even without emotions, I know how to control myself to some extent.

But when they’re gone, my emotions plunge into perfect stillness.

As I am now, with my emotions lost, I am no different from a battle weapon.

Among the hesitant students, a few began moving quietly.

Their eerie movements reeked of death.

There are those who, challenging the Demon Dungeon, shine like bright stars.

But there are also those who, like sticky shadows, hide in darkness.

Not just in Panisys, but in every nation.

Because to maintain human greed and selfishness, someone has to deal with the filth.

And here too, there were those who didn’t hesitate to drench themselves in filth.

So deeply corrupted they didn’t even realize it.

They're coming.

The moment I sensed it, something was hurled at me.

Dozens of small black beads.

As soon as the beads flew toward me, I instinctively pulled my body back and unleashed the flames of ash.

BOOOOOOM!

The flames of ash clashed with the beads, and a massive explosion erupted.

Thick black smoke instantly filled the air.

It was similar to the tools Card had used.

But there was a difference.

"Kegh, gahk!?"

This time, the smoke was a deadly kind that attacked not just the throat but also the lungs.

Students who were caught nearby screamed and rolled on the floor, writhing in pain.

It seemed the attackers didn't care if their own team was harmed.

Well, those boys, having lost their will to fight, were probably no longer considered teammates anyway.

Flames of ash surged around my body.

They burned away the poisonous smoke invading my lungs.

The black smoke filled the first-floor exit.

The students retreated from the smoke or carried away those who had collapsed within it.

Through the thick smoke, where it seemed no one could pass,

someone moved.

I sensed movement trying to bypass me and head to the second floor.

Without hesitation, I reached into the smoke to grab them.

Ping!

At that moment, a stiletto darted past my hand, aiming straight for my neck.

An attack without the slightest hesitation, intended to kill.

The movement of an assassin, trained solely for killing.

But they chose the wrong opponent.

I tilted my head slightly, and the stiletto grazed past my neck.

Ting!

My body, hardened like steel, was practically immune to blades.

But in the next moment, sparks burst from the tip of the stiletto.

BOOM!

An explosion erupted from the stiletto, wrapping my face in black smoke.

Still, the assassin didn’t stop.

He tried to drive the stiletto into my lungs, my solar plexus, my navel, and my spleen in rapid succession.

Before he could, my hand seized the stiletto.

Crunch!

Through the black smoke, my eyes flashed.

I caught the assassin opening his mouth —

A venomous fluid sprayed from it, aimed at my face.

I responded immediately, opening my own mouth.

My pupils instantly transformed into those of a dragon, and an ice beam shot out.

The assassin’s head, mid-spit, froze solid.

I thrust my hand like a blade straight into the assassin’s abdomen.

Then, with an elbow swing, I shattered his frozen head.

Crash!

The assassin, now with a gaping hole in his abdomen and a shattered head, rolled across the floor.

Even then, he tried to pull a dagger from his waist to attack.

Unbelievable.

But there was no time to be distracted.

The assassins, sacrificing one of their own, tried to rush to the second floor.

They didn’t care about their comrade’s death at all.

Just as I pushed off the ground to pursue them—

Shadow magic spread through the gaps in the black smoke.

Crash!

The assassins advancing through the smoke were caught off-guard, their feet trapped in the shadows.

The black smoke ended up impairing their own vision.

"Don’t you recognize the same trick we always use?"

Card said slyly, his nose and mouth wrapped in shadows.

I leaped without hesitation and positioned myself in front of the second-floor entrance.

Then, stomping hard on the floor—

BOOM!

An ice wall shot up, completely blocking the entrance to the second floor.

It was the same kind of ice wall Nikita had used to trap Iris's party in the Demon Dungeon.

Unless they defeated me, breaking through it would take a long time.

Standing in front of the ice wall, I raised my hand in a blade-like gesture.

It meant: If you want to pass, deal with me first.

The black smoke was swept away by a gust of wind.

One of the assassins, judging it to be a hindrance, had cleared it.

Before me stood twenty assassins.

Originally, there had been twenty-one, but one had just been killed by me.

At a glance, all of them were young boys and girls.

They were specialized assassins raised in secret by the Panisys noble faction.

"Kid."

At that moment, one of the assassins spoke.

"Mind telling us what you're doing?"

Kid —

That was Card's real name.

Card, too, was a spy from the Umbra Count’s house and had undergone assassin training.

Naturally, he was acquainted with them.

When one of the assassins, seemingly the leader, questioned him, Card simply shrugged nonchalantly.

"I'm just Card Velique. And who might you be?"

The assassin, upon hearing the brazen reply, fell silent.

Then, without a word, he drew razor-sharp daggers in both hands.

"I see. I'll take it that way."

No more words were needed.

They had decided — they would kill both me and Card.

At once, they pulled dark masks over their faces.

Since Card was on my side, they masked their identities to avoid easy recognition.

Even if there were slight differences in their builds, their identical outfits and masks made them almost indistinguishable.

"Card."

"Don’t worry. Believe it or not, I'm considered an elite among them."

If he said so, I had no reason to doubt him.

Pak!

At that moment, the assassins simultaneously kicked off the ground and leaped toward us.

"Wagnon! Three of them can use aura! Watch out!"

Card shouted as he summoned shadow magic.

Aura users.

They wouldn't be as perfect as Ban or Iris — those two were world-renowned geniuses.

No way a true genius would be among mere assassins.

Still, while they might not maintain aura constantly, there were many capable of unleashing it in an instant.

They drew it only when they were confident it could kill.

The scattered assassins converged on me, launching attacks from all directions.

Their daggers flew in at once, coordinated as if they shared a single mind.

I had no intention of getting surrounded.

Instead, I lunged forward.

Ashen flames flowed from my steel-forged body, instantly cloaking me.

At the same moment, the assassins' side formed a layer of ice armor.

It was the work of a mage among them, the same one who had stirred the wind earlier.

Trusting their ice armor, they swung their daggers at me without hesitation.

I couldn't tell yet who among them wielded aura.

I couldn't risk clashing head-on relying only on my steel body.

"Using ice magic in front of me..."

At that instant, the ashen flames around me extinguished.

In their place, the remnants of an ancient dragon howled — unleashing the breath of a frost dragon.

The icy gauntlet wrapped around my arm caught the false sun housed within my magic bow and flashed brilliantly.

"A grave mistake."

The freezing energy that erupted from the ice gauntlet engulfed them.

Their own ice armor backfired, trapping them in frozen rigidity.

As I swung my fist toward them—

Daggers shot toward my right side, my Achilles tendon, and my left thigh.

It was an attack from assassins who had flanked me.

Without breaking the motion of my swing, I stomped the ground, twisting my body.

Then I slammed my gauntlet down toward the incoming blades.

Crack!

One of my gauntlets cracked and was partially cleaved.

Proof that one of the daggers had been infused with aura.

As I leaned forward to deal with the attackers, a ball of fire came flying at my back.

KABOOM!

The explosion staggered me briefly.

Taking advantage of the opening, the assassin with the broken weapon withdrew while another seamlessly took his place.

A flawless, fluid team maneuver.

They knew exactly how to fight an opponent stronger than themselves.

Was this how the Apostles felt when facing entire teams?

The assassins were methodical in targeting me.

Individually, they were clearly weaker.

But together, they left no gaps.

Three assassins had engaged Card, too.

Meaning I had to handle all of this alone.

And to make things worse, there were other enemies lying in wait.

Those who, initially terrified by my strength, had backed away — they would regain their courage seeing me struggle and would seize the chance to strike once I tired.

The assassins knew this as well.

Indeed, their strategy probably counted on it.

Even if they had to sacrifice their own lives, they intended to complete their mission.

A death-defying will radiated from them.

If I faltered here, it would be the end.

I had already spent much of my strength fighting the Apostle earlier.

In the past, I would have relied on stamina, but not now.

What I needed now was overwhelming force.

A victory so absolute that it would crush even the thought of joining the fight.

So I raised my hand toward the sky.

I knew that using Heavenly Dragon Form would drain me completely.

But I gambled anyway.

Do or die.

Come, Lightning Caller.

From beyond the Demon Dungeon, within the clouds that gathered in the sky—

A torrent of blue lightning answered my call.

Its sheer force caused even the assassins, who had been attacking, to flinch and back off.

An overwhelming descent of lightning.

That power wrapped around me entirely, consumed by the ancient dragon within.

Crackle!

The electricity surged through me, currents running wild.

From my body, antler-like horns of current sprouted, granting me immense strength.

Heavenly Dragon Form.

Tension sharpened in the assassins' eyes.

They instinctively guessed that I couldn’t maintain this form for long.

If they could buy time, they would win.

They realized this — and acted accordingly.

And so—

BOOOM!

I smashed one of them into pulp, forcing them to realize just how foolish that thought was.

The assassins fell silent.

Nineteen left.

Not all of them would leave here alive today.