"He left?"
"Yes," Ava replied, standing straight before the desk. "He seems to have left the academy along with a few others."
"Do you think he got scared, Headmaster?" she asked with a mocking scoff. The disdain in her tone was impossible to miss. She'd thought Nyx had potential—someone worth keeping an eye on—but this sudden disappearance? It shattered that impression entirely.
The Headmaster didn't even lift his gaze. His fingers remained calmly tucked around the folded note on his desk.
"Him? Scared?" he said quietly. "You misunderstand something, Madam Lunacraft."
He finally looked up, eyes glinting with a strange mix of nostalgia and forewarning.
"He has the gall to declare war on the nobles to their faces—do you really think he'd run because of this?"
Ava blinked, caught off guard by the weight in his voice. But she straightened, brushing it off with a bow.
"Understood. I'll take my leave then. The academy won't stop moving just because one or two decide not to attend."
With that, she turned and exited the office, her footsteps fading into the corridor.
The Headmaster waited until the door clicked shut. Then, with a faint sigh, he unfolded the note in his hands.
"Take your political schemes off my ass, you old fogey.
—Nyx Vaelthorn"
A chuckle escaped his lips as he reached for the candle on his desk, letting the flames consume the message
"You're stirring another storm in the kingdom, kid…" he murmured. "Just like your father."
---
Deep inside the forest swarming with demonic beasts, a group was having a lavish feast like they didn't have a care in the world.
"Oii, pass me that skewer," Valon said to Theo, pointing at a juicy piece of meat across the fire.
"You sure are enjoying yourselves," Nyx said as he approached and sat down beside them.
"After all that nonstop mental torture since day one, I'm finally getting a break. What? Can't you see that too?" Valon scoffed, biting into the meat like a starving wolf.
"So," Theo began, "where are we heading next?"
"Same destination," Nyx replied, brushing off some dirt from his coat. "The core of the forest. But before that, we've got something to take care of."
"Something?" Ruby raised an eyebrow, curiosity glinting in her eyes.
Samantha, meanwhile, simply smiled—like she already knew what was coming.
'Sys, what's the SP count right now?' Nyx asked internally.
[You really treat me like a forgotten plot thread, huh?]
[18240 SP.]
'I don't wanna waste my confidence talking to someone who shatters it every time they speak.'
[See? Even you admit Daddy's words carry weight.]
'Yeah, yeah. Now let me focus on what matters.'
Nyx's gaze swept over the group before settling on Samantha.
"Sam. Your turn," he said, rising and casually walking off into the trees.
Without a word, Samantha followed, leaving the rest of the group confused and completely in the dark.
They arrived at a secluded spot away from the camp.
"You ready?" Nyx asked, already scanning through the system shop.
"So, what you lack right now isn't technique or skills—it's stamina and mana, right?"
Samantha sighed. "Yeah… it's annoying. Even when I know what to do, my body just can't keep up with my thoughts."
'System, can I transfer stats to her?' Nyx asked, surprised he hadn't thought of it earlier.
[Yeah. Conversion rate: 50 SP per stat point. And don't ask me about discounts or I'll smack your skull in.]
'Chill~ I wasn't gonna.' …He totally was.
'Show me her current stats for those areas.'
[END - 73 | CON - 80 | WIS - 68]
'That's… pitifully low.'
Compared to him, the entire group was weak. And if she had the highest potential among them...
'Convert 4000 SP into stat points. I'll assign them.'
[You'll have to give them to her directly. Touch her forehead and pour your mana in. I'll handle the rest.]
'...Okay.'
"Samantha, don't resist, alright?" Nyx said, raising his hand. The moment he touched her forehead, her cheeks flushed red. Her mind went blank as she felt a strange surge of mana flood into her.
Moments later, Nyx pulled away and clapped his hands.
"All done."
He tossed a red crystal toward her, which she caught on instinct.
"Learn it. It'll help you. Then send Valon next."
Samantha stared at her hand for a moment. Then, softly, she said:
"...It feels like a chain has been released which was bounding me." with that she left.
---
One by one, the group came forward and received their upgrades.
When the newcomers—Theo and Reina—saw the bizarre ritual unfold, they were stunned into silence. Not a single word could explain what they were witnessing.
Each member's shortcomings were patched up. Stat gaps filled, key abilities granted. But Nyx knew that raw power wasn't enough—they had to adapt, mentally and emotionally, to the strength they now wielded.
Valon received a deadly combat set tailored to his brutal instincts.
Ruby and Reina were buffed with refined stats and enhanced versions of their primary skill sets, making their battle potential surge.
As for Theo…
Well, poor Theo had to undergo a brutal integration process for a "basic swordsmanship technique."
The moment it started, he collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth.
It wasn't elegant. It wasn't graceful. But damn, it was effective.
After a bit more rest, the group packed up and resumed their journey—deeper into the forest. Toward a place that reeked of death with every step.
And what awaited them there…
Would leave not just Nyx, but the entire group speechless.
---
"Master, some humans have entered the forest. What action should we take?"
The voice was low and guttural, trembling with both fear and reverence as it echoed from a demon crouched behind the shadows.
"Humans…?" came a deep, rumbling reply. "Intriguing. Let's see what they do."
The figure stepped forward from the darkness.
He stood over two meters tall, a monstrous silhouette. Twin horns jutted out from his forehead, and his skin was an unnatural shade of blue—glossed with strange, polished scales, like a rhino carved from obsidian.
"We've got guests after a long time," he muttered with a grin that curled with menace. "Let's show them our… hospitality."
A cruel laugh thundered through the chamber, shaking the air. But as the sound faded, his face twisted into something cold and deadly.
"Bring them here."
At his command, the demons gathered before him dropped to their knees, their bodies trembling—not from fear, but from an ecstatic madness.
They began to slam their heads against the ground in rhythm, chanting in a rising chorus:
"May the demons rise.
May the Demon God descend."
There was no pain in their eyes. Only hysteria.
Only malice.