“F-Forgive me, Principal!!” A middle-aged man, battered and broken beyond recognition, begged through his sobs. His body was twisted in agony, limbs contorted unnaturally as blood seeped from open wounds.
The Principal stood over him, her expression unreadable, but her voice cold as ice. “So… you traded secrets for artifacts?” she asked.
The man, trembling in fear, nodded desperately. Tears streamed down his face, though his eyes were long gone… nothing but hollow, empty sockets, “Y-yes… I-I told Kennedy the academy’s secret in exchange for his advanced magic technology!” His voice cracked, full of regret and terror.
The Principal’s laughter echoed through the room, sharp and mocking. “Hahaha…”
The other Representative Professors summoned to her office, stood to the side with their heads bowed in terror. They dared not meet her gaze as she slowly and methodically tortured the man. They were silent witnesses, their hearts racing in dread.
None knew why they had been called to witness this, but all understood the message.
The Principal grinned wickedly as she tightened her grip on the traitor’s hair, forcing his face upward, “You understand the cost of your betrayal, don’t you, traitor?”
“P-Principal… ‘Hic’… P-Please… I’m so sorry… I swear I—AAAAAARRRGGGHHH!!”
His scream echoed through the office as the Principal tore his hands from his body, pulling them free with sickening ease.
Blood splattered the floor, but the Professors dared not flinch…. Some closed their eyes for just a moment, unable to stomach the sight, but they quickly forced themselves to look again.
“Hey,” the Principal called to them in an icy tone. They flinched as her cold gaze swept over them, “Don’t you dare look away. Watch this carefully.” Her voice was sharp, commanding, as her eyes scanned each face. When her gaze lingered on Alaric, it stayed a moment too long, making him shift uncomfortably.
‘Gulp’
Alaric swallowed hard, beads of sweat forming on his brow, ‘D-Does she suspects me?’ he wondered, his fists clenching tightly.
The room felt stifling, the air thick with fear.
Everyone knew why they were here…. this was a warning.
A graphic, brutal reminder of what awaited anyone who betrayed the academy!
A deep shit warning!!
“243 students… 395 guards… 300 staff members… and 402 servants,” the Principal listed off in a voice devoid of emotion, “All dead. Because of you.”
“P-please… I’m so sorry…” the traitor whimpered, his voice breaking in agony as he squirmed on the floor.
“Sorry?” the Principal spat, her face twisting in disdain, “Motherfucker!” She spat at him again, “A total of 1,340 lives were lost because of your greed. And who do you think is responsible for that?” Her eyes burned into him as she glanced at his limbless, mutilated body.
“Ahhh… ahhh…” he could only whimper, too broken and pained to form words, the pain too overwhelming.
The Principal’s hand moved toward his head, ready to tear it clean off when—
Knock, Knock
Her eyes flashed with irritation as the sound broke through the tension in the room. She glared at the door… Delphine, gave a quick nod before moving to open it.
“Good evening, Principal,” Nyx Shadowfall greeted with a respectful bow.
“Nyx Shadowfall?” The Principal’s irritation faded into a mild curiosity. A small smile played on her lips, as if the nearly-dead man at her feet wasn’t evidence of the horror she had just inflicted, “What brings you here so suddenly?”
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Nyx’s eyes flicked toward the limbless body, her lips curling in delight as she took in the scene, “Forgive me for interrupting your… fun, Principal,” she said, licking her lips as her eyes gleamed with excitement, “But I bring news.”
“Go on,” the Principal said, raising a brow with mild amusement, crossing her arms as she waited.
Nyx straightened, her tone becoming more formal, “Our Empress Scarlet has expressed a desire to visit your academy.”
The Principal’s brows furrowed slightly, the smile fading from her face, “Scarlet?” she repeated, glancing at the almost lifeless body of the traitor. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Did he contact her?”
But the man had already slipped into unconsciousness, his body too ravaged to respond.
The Principal sighed, shaking her head, “Not that it matters… even if their Empress herself begged me, I wouldn’t let this piece of garbage go.” Her smile returned, a dark and dangerous glint in her eyes as she looked back at Nyx.
“Very well. I will be ready to receive her…. I think we are going to have a nice long chat~”
….
….
Meanwhile,
Ting!
Tang!
Ting!
Tang!
The rhythmic sound of hammering filled the room as Clone Aether pounded away at a glowing, molten material. Another Clone Aether worked diligently nearby, etching precise designs into a metal rod, while the real Aether, focused and composed, peered through a microscopic device, inspecting intricate circuits…. working on something that looked like crimson-coloured crystal!
Celestia stood at the entrance, her eyes wide with curiosity as she scanned the cluttered room.
Strange-shaped materials and tools littered every surface, almost completely filling the space, “What is all of this?” she wondered aloud, picking up a small cube no larger than her palm, and turning it over in her hands.
Aether glanced up briefly, noting her interest, “That’s a shield,” he said nonchalantly before returning his attention to his work.
Celestia frowned, eyeing the small, unassuming cube. “A shield?” She raised a brow, clearly sceptical, “You’re messing with me, right? How could this little thing be a shield?”
Aether smirked but said nothing. Instead, he shot a quick look at Snowflake, who was lounging nearby.
Instantly, Snowflake perked up, her eyes gleaming mischievously.
“Okayyyy~”
Snowflake purred, before flicking her powerful tail in Celestia’s direction, the attack fast and sudden.
“What the…” Celestia reacted instinctively, raising her arm to block the blow. Just as Snowflake’s tail was about to connect with her bare hand—
Keerrrr-Snappppp
The cube in Celestia’s grip unfolded and expanded, transforming within milliseconds into a solid, round shield that attached itself to her forearm. Celestia blinked, wide-eyed, as the shield took the impact effortlessly, barely moving her from her spot.
“H-How?” she muttered, completely stunned. The shield was sleek but incredibly sturdy, far stronger than its compact form suggested.
Aether winked at her, “Nothing fancy. I just merged my design with Kennedy’s spider suit tech. If this were my world, I think they’d call it nanobots.”
“Nanobots…” Celestia echoed, nodding slowly, her face still a picture of disbelief. She inspected the shield further, amazed by how seamlessly it had transformed, “You made this… in just three weeks?”
Aether simply smiled, his eyes twinkling with pride!
Celestia’s grin widened, impressed and a little giddy… Sure, he got it from Kennedy but that’s a product, not a design, he reverse-engineered it and remodelled it to his use…. so, He really did something amazing.
“Snowflake, your master is the best!” she exclaimed, rushing over to wrap her arms around Aether and planting a quick kiss on his cheek in her excitement.
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“Yaaaayyyy~Massterrr~ bessssttttt~~!” Snowflake chimed in, her excitement was infectious. With a joyful pounce, she leapt into the hug, her massive form slamming into Aether.
“W-Wait! NO—!” Aether shouted, but it was too late.
BOOM!
The crystal Aether had been working on made contact with his skin, reacting violently.
A small explosion erupted in a flash of light and next thing,
Thud!
Thud!
He immediately threw both Celestia and Snowflake out of the Training Hall!
Celestia blinked in surprise, brushing soot from her cheek as she shot an annoyed glare at Snowflake, “This is your fault! Now he’s mad at me because of you!”
Snowflake, equally indignant, hissed angrily, “NOOoooo~ Youuuu~ madeee~ Angrrryyyyy~ Mastterrrr~”
Celestia stood, brushing herself off, “No way! It was your giant body that caused the whole mess, you brainless idiot!” she retorted, her voice sharp with frustration.
“HIIISSSS~~~~”
Snowflake’s eyes flared with fury, her serpentine form tensing up at the insult, “Bigggg… bodddyyyyyy~~~?” she hissed, glaring daggers at Celestia before turning to leave in a huff, tail flicking behind her. As she slithered out, she muttered under her breath:
“Bittccchhhhhyyyy~~~”
Celestia stood there, frozen for a moment. Her mouth dropped open, her brain trying to process what she had just heard, “What the fuckkk?!!” she exclaimed.
She had never, in all her life, expected to hear that kind of language from the monster.
Her eyes narrowed as a dark grin spread across her face. “Looks like someone needs to be reminded who the master is around here,” she said with a dangerous smile, cracking her knuckles ominously.