Chapter 67: The Dome Falls, The King’s Men

He was twenty meters from the Academy’s side gate when he heard the sound.

It was a deep, grinding crack, like a mountain falling over.

Alvian turned around.

The Colossus was still dying. Its thirty-meter body was falling apart in slow motion. The monster’s giant frame collapsed inward.

The head fell last.

It was three meters of solid crystal with six empty, dark eyes. Gravity pulled the massive head forward, and it fell hard.

The training dome was right below it.

This was the same dome where Alvian had taken his Combat Assessment six weeks ago. The same platform where his Clearwater Palm had first shown its acid power. The same arena where he had beaten Darius Magnus in front of four thousand students who called him trash.

The dome was already broken from the battle.

The giant head smashed into it like a massive wrecking ball.

CRUNCH.

The walls crashed inward. The roof shattered into a thousand pieces. The dome collapsed, burying the combat stage under tons of stone and crystal. Dust blew across the courtyard like thick fog.

The monster’s head rolled to a stop in the center of the mess. Its six dead eyes stared at nothing.

Alvian looked at the ruin for three seconds. The dome where they said he was weak. Where Darius called him garbage. Where the whole school laughed at an E-Rank Clearwater student who killed a training monster in six seconds.

It was gone. Crushed under the head of a monster he killed with a broken sword.

He didn’t feel happy. He didn’t feel anything at all. His old feelings didn’t matter anymore. A giant crystal monster had destroyed them completely.

He turned around and kept walking.

The Rift was closing. The strange humming feeling in his bones grew quiet. His Clearwater resonance stopped glowing. The link between his Talent and the tear in reality was cut.

He checked his status panel.

╔══════════════════════════════╗

║ STATUS PANEL

║ Level: 70

║ STR: 530 | AGI: 290

║ VIT: 855 | INT: 142

║ Essence: 280

║ HP: 1,710/1,710

║ KP: 53

║ EXP Bank: ~235,000,000

║ Skills: Abyssal Dissolution

║ Domain (S) | Void Step:

║ Annihilation (S) | Severing

║ Sword Aura (A) | Clearwater

║ Palm (D, enhanced)

║ Passive: Bone Corrosion

╚══════════════════════════════╝

[World Will Status: CRITICAL.]

[Fate Enforcer arrival: 71 hours, 32 minutes.]

[Advice: Finish personal business before they arrive.]

[Advice: Get a new weapon.]

[System Note: The Host’s current sword is held together by magic, acid, and anger.]

Alvian walked through the side gate. The guards were gone, helping the wounded or dead. The security systems were broken. Nobody stopped him.

The street outside was packed with people.

A huge crowd had gathered. Regular citizens came to see the bright light, the emergency news, and the massive monster. Guild guards tried to keep order while medics ran between cars.

Someone spotted him.

"THAT’S HIM!"

The shout spread through the crowd fast. Heads turned. Hundreds of people locked their eyes onto the bloody, shirtless boy carrying a broken sword.

Alvian didn’t slow down. He moved quickly through the crowd. People jumped back as he got close. His Clearwater Coating was still active, covering his skin in a thin layer of burning acid magic. Anyone close to him felt a hot, burning feeling and backed away fast.

He made it one block before he heard the engines.

A heavy mechanical hum echoed around him. Five flying armored ships descended from the sky. They carried the emblem of the Royal Family. It was the Royal Guard—the King’s personal army.

They blocked the street, cutting off his path to the Undercity. People screamed and ran away as news drones flew in closer to record everything.

The main ship opened.

Ten Royal Knights stepped out. They wore shiny white and gold plate armor. Every single one was Level 60 or higher. Their essence signature felt strong, steady, and dangerous.

Their leader was a tall, tough-looking woman with a stern face.

"Alvian Vance," she said loudly. "By order of King Alistair Valdus, you must come to the Royal Palace right now."

She waited two seconds.

"If you refuse, it is treason."

The ten Knights moved around him in a circle. They held their hands near their swords, ready to fight.

Alvian figured out the situation in less than a second.

Ten Level 60 Knights. Five flying war ships with heavy guns. Magic-blocking fields active, cutting his magic output by thirty percent. Enough power to destroy a fort.

His stats: Level 70. S-Rank Domain. S-Rank Void Step. A-Rank Sword Aura. VIT 855. STR 530. And one broken sword.

The math was easy. He could win. His Domain would dissolve the Knights in seconds. Void Step would let him dodge their attack. The magic blocker would slow him down, but it wouldn’t stop him.

But winning meant killing the King’s soldiers in front of live cameras. Killing Royal Knights would make him a public enemy and a criminal across the country.

With Fate Enforcers coming in 71 hours, he couldn’t fight the whole kingdom too.

’Following orders is the best choice. Get inside the palace. Find the Tears. Cure Martha. Deal with the rest later.’

He looked at the Knight Commander. She was staring at him, ready to die if a fight broke out.

"Lead the way," Alvian said.

The Knight Commander blinked in surprise. She expected a fight, or at least an argument. Not an easy surrender.

"Your sword," she said.

Alvian held up his broken blade. It was split down the middle and barely holding together. It couldn’t cut anything right now.

The Commander looked at the ruined blade, then at Alvian.

"Keep it," she said with a tired sigh.

The Knights surrounded him. The flying ships lifted into the air. The group moved toward the Royal Palace slowly and smoothly to show the crowd that everything was under control.

Alvian walked calmly in the middle. He memorized every detail: guard spots, weapon types, ship guns, patrol timing, radio channels, and magic barriers on nearby buildings.

If he had to fight his way out later, he would know all the weak spots.

The Royal Palace appeared ahead. It was made of giant white stone and crystal towers, built to scare and impress visitors.

To Alvian, it was just a building. A building hiding the Tears of the Phoenix inside.

The giant gates opened. The group walked inside, and the heavy doors slammed shut behind them with a loud boom.

Alvian said nothing. He walked forward between the Knights, ready to face whatever the King prepared for him.

The timer kept ticking in his head.

[71 hours, 12 minutes remaining.]

A/N

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