That night, sleep was a joke. My dreams kept replaying Lilith's warnings and Valmira's dreadful prophecy. I drifted off only to see coals and arches in an endless loop.
A thunderous rumble woke me at 2 a.m. The dorm room shuddered. Yuria was already out of bed, eyes wide. "That wasn't a thunderclap," she whispered, pulling me to the window. Outside, the courtyard was bathed in eerie green light.
We rushed outside. The courtyard had transformed. Great runic symbols blazed on the ground, green fire licking at the ivy. In the center, a roiling vortex of darkness swirled like a hurricane about to break. The air smelled of sulfur and ozone. Something huge was being summoned here.
Yuria drew her swords, lightning sparking on the blades. "Someone set up a pointy sign, and we better be ready," she whispered.
I snatched my Codex. From the darkness, a chilling voice rumbled: "Well done, child." Lilith Elzevara emerged from the shadows, her eyes fierce. "It seems our dear student has lit the fuse."
"What's happening?" I yelled, but a crack split the air.
From the vortex rose a towering face of smoke and flame, horns of shadow curving from its head. Two ember-red eyes locked onto us. "Architect… awake me!" it thundered in a voice like a volcano.
My blood ran cold. Lilith reacted instantly. "No!" she shouted, casting a glowing rune. Green energy blasted from her hand, hitting the demon's face. The visage split into swirling smoke and the vortex momentarily collapsed.
Yuria pulled me back. "Stay down, human!"
But the face formed again, angrier, flames flaring. I had no time. I raised the Codex, whispering a desperate incantation. The air around me screamed. I imagined rain, and suddenly a dome of water encased the courtyard, smothering the green flame that tried to break through.
The demon roared in fury, burning through my barrier. Screams echoed as part of the dorm caught fire.
Lilith shouted, "Ren, push forward!"
With what strength I had left, I pointed at the demon's face. "Override fate of flame!"
Power surged through me. The fire and smoke were sucked upward like ashes to the heavens. Instead of the demon face, glowing runes rained from the sky, spiraling downward. They shimmered one by one as they melted on the ground.
Lilith dissolved the remaining vortex with a final spell. The courtyard's green light died. In the silence that followed, only a single rune fragment lay at my feet — the Architect sigil I'd seen in my dreams.
Yuria retrieved it, her hands shaking. "That was the demon king?" she asked breathlessly.
Lilith looked thoughtfully at the Sigil piece. "Not his true form — just a summoned avatar. But it was enough. The seal is broken now, Kazuki Ren. The threat isn't gone."
My knees gave out. "We actually stopped it…"
Lilith gave a tired smile. "For today, yes. Now we prepare. This school won't be attacked again, not while I draw breath. You three have earned your rest."
I exhaled shakily. Our last hours had felt like a war — now morning light crept in.
Yuria nudged me as we walked back. "Think we'll ever sleep normally again?" she asked.
"Doubt it. Maybe the Academy will start holding midnight self-defense electives," I joked weakly.
She snorted. "At least we passed our pop quiz."
I hugged the rune fragment in my pocket. If nightmares were the new normal, being awake couldn't be much worse.
We parted at the dorm steps. In my room, I hid the Sigil fragment under my pillow, just in case. It pulsed faintly, as if agreeing. Whether demon or human, apparently I had to deal with demon kings now.
I slid into bed and stared at the ceiling. My mind replayed the night's chaos: Lilith's spells, Yuria's courage, the demon king's face.
Finally, exhaustion took over.
Tomorrow, more chaos would come — and I'd be waiting.