Chapter 12 - The Level 32 Wall

  Toby stood within his sea of consciousness.

  But this was not the calm, silent place he usually found himself in. This space was different.

  It was chaos.

  And yet… It was beautiful.

  Lightning struck endlessly across the vast inner world. Blue explosions lit up the darkness again and again, each flash casting brilliant light across the endless horizon. It was wild, violent, overwhelming. But there was something breathtaking about it.

  Then something appeared before him.

  A blue bird descended through the storm.

  Its wings were long and elegant, feathers glowing with a soft electric sheen. Lightning traced along its body. Its eyes were sharp, intelligent, and almost painfully clear as it landed directly in front of him.

  “Hi,” Toby said quietly. “You’re Valeria’s guardian?”

  The bird did not answer.

  Instead, it stepped closer. Closer.

  Until its luminous eyes were right in front of his.

  “You resemble him,” the bird finally said.

  Another bolt of lightning detonated across the sky.

  And. Toby’s eyes snapped open.

  A violent surge of energy flooded into his body, rushing through every vein, every circuit. It felt endless. Overwhelming.

  The massive greatsword formed before him once more, slamming into the ground as crimson flames erupted fiercely along its blade.

  At the same time, purple lightning exploded outward from his body.

  Something began forming around him.

  He lifted both arms instinctively as layers of armor constructed themselves piece by piece. In seconds, he was fully encased in a new set of armor.

  Blue like concentrated lightning, with faint crimson fire patterns running across its surface.

  Power surged through him.

  Real power.

  He gritted his teeth and grabbed the greatsword.

  Only then did he glance back.

  Vale was collapsed in Cassie’s arms, unconscious.

  “Leave Valeria to me, Toby,” the blonde girl said.

  Toby gave a slow nod.

  Toby turned back to the front and tightened his grip on the greatsword.

  The surge of power inside him was overwhelming. It flooded his limbs, sharpened his senses, cleared the fog of exhaustion from his mind. Whatever this state was, he knew one thing.

  It was limited.

  This was not power he could sustain.

  He had to end this quickly.

  He launched forward.

  And damn.

  He was fast.

  The world around him felt slower, as if everything had been dragged into thick water. Or was it him? Was he the one moving beyond his limits?

  In a blink, he was already in front of the towering Sand Tyrant. The monster’s roar shook the battlefield, vibrating through the air like a war drum.

  His instincts screamed.

  The monster slammed its claw into the ground and roared again. Massive earth spikes burst violently from the desert floor, shooting upward at terrifying speed.

  Toby vanished from where he stood.

  In the next instant, he reappeared directly in front of the monster’s head.

  He gritted his teeth. “You’re done! Rghhh!”

  He swung from the side with everything he had.

  The greatsword cut through the air at blinding speed. Lightning detonated along the blade while crimson flames exploded outward. The strike slammed directly into the monster’s face.

  A massive explosion erupted.

  Thunder cracked.

  Fire burst in every direction.

  The shockwave hurled Toby backward. His sword spun from the force, nearly ripped from his grasp. But he caught the hilt again mid-flight and drove it into the ground to steady himself.

  The Sand Tyrant shrieked in fury.

  Dozens of earth spikes erupted from beneath Toby, bursting upward in rapid succession, aiming to impale him from all sides.

  He ran.

  Every step he took triggered more spikes to explode from the ground behind and beneath him. The desert became a forest of jagged stone chasing his every movement.

  He leapt.

  More spikes shot upward.

  Toby twisted his body midair, spinning with the greatsword. A violent vortex of lightning and flame spiraled around him.

  The storm collided with the incoming spikes.

  They shattered instantly.

  Stone fragments exploded outward as fire and thunder tore through everything in his path.

  Toby gritted his teeth. “This thing’s tough. I have to hit the same spot again and again.”

  The monster shrieked furiously. Suddenly, the ground around them loosened as massive waves of sand rose and spread across the area, swallowing the solid footing beneath Toby’s boots.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  He moved. But explosions erupted around him in rapid succession.

  Sand detonated from below and beside him, bursting upward with crushing force.

  “This is hard to dodge!” he growled.

  He sprinted at full speed, lightning snapping wildly around his armor. Explosions chased him from every direction, each blast barely missing as he twisted and pivoted through the chaos.

  He spun his body sharply, and a swirling vortex of flame and wind formed around him, deflecting the blasts of sand and debris the monster hurled his way.

  In the next instant, he was already in front of the monster’s head again.

  He roared and rotated his entire body into the swing.

  The greatsword cut forward with terrifying speed. A massive eruption of fire detonated around the creature’s skull, lightning tearing through the flames as the blade struck the same damaged point as before.

  Another violent shockwave exploded outward.

  Both Toby and the Sand Tyrant were thrown back in opposite directions, blasted away by the sheer force of the collision.

  Toby slammed into the ground, skidding across the torn desert.

  He forced himself up, breath ragged, eyes burning with determination.

  “This isn’t over!”

  From a distance, someone else was watching.

  A boy with blazing red hair and a pair of fiery wings spread wide across his back hovered in the air, his flaming sword still burning in his grip.

  “That kid is really getting in the way,” he muttered, grinding his teeth. “Finish that monster quickly. We’re not here to play around.”

  “Yes, Your Highness,” one of the participants near him replied immediately, lowering his head slightly before turning back to fight.

  Not far from there, the calm girl surrounded by floating bubbles also paused to observe.

  “He’s… reckless,” she murmured softly. “But brave.”

  Others noticed as well. It was impossible not to.

  “That idiot is just lucky,” someone scoffed while blocking an incoming attack. “I’m not losing to someone like him.”

  “Tch. Acting like the main character already,” another spat bitterly.

  “He’s going to collapse any second. Just watch.”

  “Show-off,” one more muttered.

  **

  Inside a separate chamber, where a single floating screen hovered in the air, several figures stood watching the trial unfold.

  On the screen, lightning and fire clashed against the towering Sand Tyrant.

  “I thought I was done being surprised,” one of them said. “But those two kids actually pulled off a Harmonic Link.”

  “And they just met, didn’t they?”

  “Is this… the power of love?” someone added with a dramatic sigh.

  “Ahem.” Another cleared his throat. “Maybe we should learn something from them. If children can synchronize that easily, what excuse do we have?”

  “Throw that ridiculous idea away,” a different voice cut in sharply. “They’re in a life-or-death situation. Harmonic Link isn’t about romance. It’s about alignment under pressure. Try surviving together first before talking about finding partners.”

  “You’re too harsh,” someone replied with a chuckle. “Look at them. They’ve pushed themselves this far already.”

  At the front of the room stood a woman with long black hair tied into a neat braid. She tilted her head slightly as she studied the screen, her eyes calm but attentive.

  “I think this is the first time a Level 32 Sand Tyrant might actually be defeated in the opening trial,” Lyriana said.

  She glanced over her shoulder at the others.

  “Alright. My job here is done,” she added with a small yawn. “I’ve been entertained enough.”

  A faint grin curved across her lips as the battle continued to rage on the screen behind her.

  **

  Toby shot into the air once more.

  His body felt like it was tearing itself apart. Every muscle screamed. Every breath burned. He gritted his teeth and forced out every last drop of strength still buried inside him. His heart pounded violently, as if it might burst from his chest.

  He spun midair.

  A dragon’s roar thundered across the battlefield.

  Lightning shrieked in every direction.

  Then. A massive explosion of fire slammed directly into the monster’s head.

  This was the fifth strike.

  And this time, it was different.

  The impact did not just shake the Sand Tyrant.

  It shattered it.

  The monster’s head cracked apart under the combined force of lightning and flame, fragments of hardened scale exploding outward as the final blow tore through it completely.

  The greatsword flew from Toby’s hand, spinning wildly before embedding itself far into the desert ground.

  Toby’s body was thrown back, powerless.

  The blue lightning and crimson fire surrounding him flickered and vanished piece by piece.

  The armor dissolved.

  The aura disappeared.

  What remained was just him, dressed in a white uniform now burned and torn, his skin pale as he collapsed onto the sand.

  He lay there, unmoving.

  Then. A vortex formed nearby. A swirling portal of light opened in the air.

  From it stepped a woman with black hair tied in a braid.

  “The trial is over,” she said.

  With a simple flick of her hand, something shot out from the remains of the Sand Tyrant and flew straight toward her palm.

  A card materialized there.

  She examined it briefly.

  “Bone Card,” she said, glancing toward Toby’s unconscious form. “You’re lucky, kid.”

  **

  As far as Toby knew, he had been unconscious for about two days.

  He woke up in the Academy’s medical wing, a quiet recovery facility reserved for injured participants. Thankfully, the final announcement of the trial results was scheduled for that very day. Just as his consciousness returned.

  His body had fully recovered. Completely. Not a trace of injury remained.

  He quickly changed into the set of clothes that had been prepared for him.

  Then he ran.

  He rushed out of the building, crossed the school grounds, and headed toward the same area where the trial had first begun. A large number of participants had already gathered there.

  Though not nearly as many as before.

  Shouldn’t there be even fewer?

  He slowed his steps, still unable to fully believe he had survived that final battle. But… had he truly defeated that monster?

  “Toby!”

  He flinched slightly at the sound of his name.

  Turning around, he saw Valeria and Cassandra walking toward him from behind.

  Cassie wore her usual gentle smile. Vale, on the other hand, simply looked at him quietly.

  “You’ve recovered?” Vale asked.

  “We were worried about you, Toby,” Cassie added.

  “Yeah. Good thing I didn’t miss this,” he replied with a grin.

  “Come on. Let’s go see the final results,” Vale said.

  She stepped forward first. Cassie moved to Toby’s left side, and the three of them walked together toward the main hall.

  Inside, no more than two hundred participants remained. Yet something in the air felt different now.

  Why were more people looking in his direction?

  Or were they looking at Cassie? At Vale?

  Cassie looked like a porcelain doll, with her soft features and delicate expression. Vale was just as eye-catching, especially after boldly challenging the examiners during the trial.

  Maybe Toby did not quite belong standing between them.

  They found seats without much difficulty. In fact, it was easier than before. People who had been about to sit down either hesitated or quietly moved aside when the three of them approached.

  That was… good, he supposed.

  After a short while, something descended from above.

  Just like before.

  Instructor Lyriana slowly dropped from the air, landing lightly this time on a stage set at the center of the hall.

  Moments later, several other figures appeared around her. Some stepped out from swirling portals. Others walked calmly in from different entrances.

  Clearly, they were the Academy’s instructors.

  “Do you know their names, Vale?” Toby asked quietly.

  “No. But I’m sure Cassie does,” she replied.

  Cassie gave a small nod. “There are Rank-7s. Rank-8s. And… one Titled Cardmaster among them.”

  “A Titled Cardmaster?”

  Toby stiffened slightly and looked toward the stage again.

  “Which one?”

  They all looked relatively young. None of them seemed older than their early forties at most.

  Weren’t Titled Cardmasters supposed to be far older than that?

  “Today, I will announce the rankings from yesterday’s trial,” Lyriana began. “Under normal circumstances, Eclipsion Academy selects thirty candidates for each of its five groups.”

  She paused briefly.

  “In addition, there will be one special group. Reserved for those who achieved the highest overall scores.”

  A quiet murmur spread across the hall.

  Lyriana lifted her hand slightly to the side.

  Names began to form in the air, one after another. The glowing letters drifted wildly above them, scattering across the space. At the very least, they would finally know whether they had passed or not.

  “You may now search for your names within the ranking,” she continued evenly.