Seizing Power
As I lay back on the bed, the hard mattress pressing against my back, exhaustion crashed over me like waves.
The room wasn't anything special.
Unlike Lorraine, who belonged to S-Class—the elite reserve for the academy's top talents—
I wasn't in S-Class, so the dorm facilities were inevitably shitty.
"……."
The thick stench of blood that had lingered in my nostrils was gone.
But the stinging sensation in my fists remained.
I stared blankly at the ceiling, trying to forget the pain.
Just hours ago, I'd been gripped by the terror of having my head severed.
Yet now, it felt like that nightmare was nothing more than a midsummer dream.
I was facing a perfectly peaceful academy afternoon.
'No way it was a dream.'
Silly thought.
Screech.
I sat up from the bed and stood in front of the mirror.
Blood splatters from pounding Kaiden had dried on my cheek.
I wiped them roughly with my sleeve, and my sharply honed eyes stared back at me.
They looked like the eyes of someone a decade older.
Or like those of a veteran who'd seen it all.
'Tomorrow, the Borji Ducal House will send someone.'
Even as a collateral branch, he was still ducal blood.
It was an academy spar, sure, but I'd knocked out all his teeth and shattered his arm—they wouldn't let that slide.
Once they grasped the situation, they'd come at me without mercy or restraint.
Their methods were obvious.
Pressure me into expulsion quietly.
Or send assassins to end my life.
"……."
Thinking of those annoying bastards already made me want to sigh.
'I acted without thinking.'
I inwardly admitted I'd gone too far.
But what could I do?
My head wasn't working right in the heat of the moment.
So.
'I need to gain power somehow before that.'
"……."
Sizzle. Sss. Splat.
I got up from the bed and sat at the desk.
I pulled out a sheet of paper and began jotting down the events I remembered, in no particular order.
[1. Descent of the Ancient Gods. Empire's Rift]
[2. Humanity's Traitors]
[3. Lorraine's Awakening]
[…]
A lot of time had passed, so it wasn't 100% accurate, but quite a few came to mind.
I wasn't particularly good at remembering things.
There were probably plenty I'd missed.
Still, more came out than expected, leaving me with a strange feeling.
"…Should I be happy about this?"
Better than forgetting and getting caught off guard.
And then,
scratching my head, I nearly forgot the most crucial one.
I wrote it boldly at the bottom.
[??. The Reason for Lorraine's Betrayal—She Who Killed Me]
"……."
Speculation abounded, but no certainty yet.
One thing was sure.
This time, I wouldn't let her decide my fate.
'This time, it's mine.'
I needed to get stronger.
Not just academy level—strong enough to overwhelm the coming catastrophe and the ancient gods.
For that, there was a place I had to move on tonight.
'The academy underground, and the hidden ruins beyond.'
A place no one knew.
I'd learned it by chance later, wandering with her, but the Mana Spring left by the founding archmage was there.
One of the secrets behind Lorraine's ability to stand equal with inhuman monsters.
A power I needed to claim in this life—before her, much earlier.
“…….”
Moonlight streamed coldly through the window.
Time to move.
I threw on the black coat hanging in the closet and left the room.
***
My footsteps halted abruptly in the corridor.
The academy cloaked in darkness exuded a oppressive pressure utterly unlike the daytime bustle.
Especially right after half-killing Kaiden during the day.
The watchful eyes patrolling the dorms would be fiercer than usual, wondering if I'd try to flee.
'Five minutes until patrol time.'
Not exact, but I recalled the guards' rough schedule.
I muffled my footsteps and slipped into the shadows.
Thud. Thud.
Soon, faint light from mana lanterns flickered at the corridor's end.
"Yawn…."
Two armored guards passed, yawning lazily.
“Hey, you hear the news?"
"What news?"
"Man, you're slow. Young Master Kaiden got his teeth all knocked out by a junior."
“…Shh! Keep it down. You want the Borji House hearing?"
"We do anything? Tsk… Whoever it was, they're in deep shit."
"……."
I let their fading voices trail behind me.
Zeek leaped toward the dilapidated sewer entrance behind the main building.
The place he headed now didn't exist on any map.
It was the underground passage made by the first principal and archmage, Luminus, to reach the ruins.
Breath held, he reached the sewer, where damp, fishy moss assaulted his nose.
No way to call the stench pleasant, even as a lie.
Recalling memories, he pressed his palm to the wall and moved slowly.
How long had it been?
At least an hour.
As the mana he released began to wane,
Rumble—
A faint vibration, and the solid wall rippled grotesquely, opening a space.
'Found it.'
Stepping inside, perfect silence descended, blocking all external noise.
Stairs plunged endlessly downward.
How far down? The air flow began to shift.
'Close.'
Not far from the goal.
Thick mana aura seeped into his core.
After a long trek, the passage ended, revealing a vast cavern.
Blue liquid swirled silently beneath a massive crystal pillar.
The opportunity that propelled protagonist Lorraine to her future heights.
The fateful encounter that explosively expanded her mana capacity lay before him.
“…….”
Even gazing at it, Zeek's eyes remained coldly sunken.
By rights, this power was hers in a year—discovered by chance before her academy graduation.
"Zeek!"
Her smiling face flashed in his mind.
"…Zeek."
But so did her tear-streaked face as she beheaded him.
"Hoo…."
He shook his head fiercely, sighing away the distractions.
He stripped off his shoes and clothes, then stepped into the cold Mana Spring.
Sizzle. Crackle!
Pain like flesh searing rose from his toes.
Unrefined mana spring water invading unprotected flesh.
Like thousands of needles stabbing his veins.
“Ugh…!”
Horrific agony that threatened unconsciousness—he bit his lip instinctively.
A solitary battle allowing no groans.
Thump! Thump!
His heart raced wildly in response.
Engraved mana circulation techniques instinctively writhed.
'Accept it. Don't resist—make it yours.'
A mediocre body without Lorraine's genius.
But if the vessel was small, shatter and remake it here.
Crack. Crunch!
Bones dislocating and resetting echoed grotesquely in the cavern.
"Grraaagh…!"
Like swallowing molten lead.
In the torment ripping his body apart, his mind sharpened to a razor's edge.
'Don't let go.'
No matter how much it hurt, like dying.
Even if madness beckoned, endure.
He had to claim this power.
Lorraine had built her foundation here to reach the empire's trio of Executors.
As vision reddened and mind blurred,
he unleashed the sole secret mana technique he knew.
Hummm—!
A heavy vibration stirred deep in his chest.
Whoosh! Spurt!
The swirling mana liquid poured into his dantian like a massive funnel.
Veins swelled to bursting, black blood oozing from his skin—but he didn't stop.
No, he craved more fiercely.
'More… come on!'
This pain was nothing.
Compared to decapitation.
Compared to betrayal by a trusted friend.
Hummm—!
How much time passed?
The cavern's blue glow vanished, swallowed by pitch darkness.
The full Mana Spring was absorbed entirely, not a drop left.
"Huff… huff!"
Ragged breaths steadied.
He slowly opened his eyes.
Vision was dozens of times sharper than before.
He saw every dust mote in the dark cavern, felt underground water vibrations through the walls.
“…….”
Crunch.
Clenching his fist unleashed surging mana from his fingertips.
Now he was certain.
Assassins from the Borji Ducal House were no threat anymore.
A year early.
The power Lorraine should have claimed.
He'd stolen it first.
“…….”
No guilt.
He wasn't that good-hearted, nor soft.
Standing slowly, black blood dripped to the floor.
He'd have to wash anyway after coming here.
"…Time to head back."
Maybe from the feat.
Or the day's events.
He was utterly exhausted.