Chapter 263 - 262 : Plan B

Chapter 263: Chapter 262 : Plan B

The dungeon corridor fell into complete silence.

The students from the other academies stood frozen, staring at the spot where their teammate had vanished.

Only moments ago, he had been alive.

He had charged at Arthur with a sword in hand, convinced that the dark-haired first-year was exhausted, outnumbered, and vulnerable.

Then Arthur had cut off his hand.

Not with a grand spell.

Not with some overwhelming technique.

Just one clean swing of a katana.

And after that, Arthur had beaten him down with the sheathed blade without a shred of remorse.

Again.

And again.

And again.

There had been no hesitation in Arthur’s eyes.

No pity.

No mercy.

Only cold brutality.

The boy’s screams still seemed to echo through the dim corridor, even after his body had dissolved into particles of light.

Arthur stood in the middle of the bloodstained stone floor, his katana resting casually against his shoulder.

His crimson eyes swept across the remaining students.

Then he smiled.

"Come on."

His voice was almost casual.

"I am waiting."

Arthur spread his arms slightly.

"Did you not all want a piece of me?"

Several students flinched.

A boy standing behind Christopher slowly took a step back, his fingers trembling around the hilt of his weapon.

"That guy is a maniac."

He shook his head.

"I am not going."

Arthur tilted his head.

Then he noticed something.

There were 30 students surrounding them, yet Christopher was the only official representative from his academy.

There was no Amaya.

No Bryan.

No Ranga.

The other academies had not sent their representatives into the first match.

They understood that a single student could not participate in every event, so they had chosen to preserve their strongest fighters for later rounds.

Christopher, however, had entered with a large mixed group, believing that numerical superiority would be enough to overwhelm Arthur’s team.

Now, that confidence was beginning to collapse.

Evangline raised her Desert Eagle.

"If they are not coming to us," she said with a grin, "then let us go to them."

Arthur glanced at her.

Then he smiled.

"Go ahead."

Evangline loaded the modified magazine Arthur had given her.

This time, she adjusted her stance and braced herself against the recoil.

Her shoulders tightened.

Her feet planted firmly against the stone floor.

She raised the Desert Eagle and aimed at the cluster of terrified students surrounding Christopher.

Then she pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The gunshot thundered through the corridor.

The modified bullet tore through the air like a cannon shell.

A split second later—

BOOM!

The explosion swallowed several students.

The shockwave ripped through the corridor, sending fragments of stone flying as smoke and flames erupted from the impact point.

Some students did not even have time to react.

Evangline fired again.

Bang!

BOOM!

Another explosion tore through the formation.

Then a third.

Bang!

BOOM!

The corridor shook violently beneath their feet.

Fire, heat, smoke, and shattered stone filled the passage.

Students screamed and scattered in every direction, desperately trying to escape the barrage.

But the explosions came too quickly.

When the smoke finally began to clear, 5 students had already been eliminated.

Their bodies dissolved into motes of light.

The remaining students stumbled backward.

But Christopher and the students closest to him were still standing.

At the last possible moment, Christopher had raised one hand.

A dark, transparent barrier had materialized before him.

The explosions slammed into it one after another.

BOOM!

The barrier trembled violently.

Cracks of mana spread across its surface.

Yet it held.

Christopher slowly lowered his hand.

His expression remained calm.

Far too calm.

"You fucking bastards."

His voice was low, but the anger underneath it was unmistakable.

"Did you really come here to win the competition?"

His gaze shifted toward the remaining students.

"Attack them all at once."

He pointed toward Arthur’s team.

"They will not be able to do—"

Before Christopher could finish, several students suddenly turned and ran.

They abandoned the fight completely.

They sprinted toward the massive stone door at the end of the corridor.

They were students from Iron Fortress Academy.

Their group leader looked back once.

"Forget that guy!"

His voice trembled.

"Run toward the door! Focus on getting the treasure!"

He clenched his teeth.

"Avoid combat! Even 3rd place will be enough!"

His eyes flicked toward Arthur.

"These people are not normal!"

The others immediately followed.

The moment the Iron Fortress students began running, the students from the other academies did the same.

The alliance collapsed instantly.

No one wanted to die for Christopher.

No one wanted to challenge Arthur’s group anymore.

They scattered toward the door, desperate to put as much distance between themselves and the monsters behind them as possible.

Arthur simply watched them flee.

Then he smiled.

His eyes shifted toward Victor.

Victor met his gaze.

No words were necessary.

He understood immediately.

"Ruler of Eclipse."

Dark mana surged around Victor.

He raised his sword and drove its tip into the ground.

BOOM!

The dungeon floor trembled.

A wave of dark mana spread outward from the impact point.

Then the stone beneath the fleeing students began to distort.

The solid ground softened.

Stone turned into thick, shifting sand.

"What the hell is this?!"

"Move!"

"My legs are stuck!"

The students desperately tried to escape.

But the more they struggled, the deeper they sank.

Their feet disappeared.

Then their ankles.

Their knees.

Within seconds, several were trapped up to their waists.

Some students tried pulling their comrades free.

Others blasted the sand with mana.

It did nothing.

The terrain itself had become Victor’s weapon.

Every movement only dragged them deeper.

Victor calmly watched them struggle.

Then Jasmine stepped forward.

"I will handle it from here."

Arthur turned toward her.

His expression changed.

Mana began gathering around Jasmine.

But it was not ice mana.

A crimson aura slowly surrounded her.

Blood-red energy gathered behind her back, condensing into dozens of razor-sharp spears.

Jasmine raised one hand.

"Blood Spears."

Dozens of blood spears formed in the air.

Each one was thin and deadly, its pointed tip glowing with concentrated blood mana.

The trapped students looked up.

Their faces turned pale.

Jasmine’s fingers moved.

The spears launched.

Schlk!

Schlk!

Schlk!

They tore through the air.

One after another, they struck their targets with terrifying precision.

A spear pierced through one student’s head.

Another struck the next.

Then another.

There was no wasted movement.

No hesitation.

No missed attack.

Within moments, the trapped students collapsed into the sand.

Their bodies dissolved into motes of light.

The crimson spears vanished soon after, leaving only fading particles of energy drifting through the corridor.

Arthur stared at Jasmine.

He was genuinely stunned.

That was his move.

Well...

Technically, he had stolen it from Elizabeth, the Vampire Queen.

It had originally been her technique.

But he had learned it.

He had used it.

And now Jasmine was using it right in front of him.

The audacity.

But what shocked Arthur even more was the execution.

She had used it better than he did.

Despite her restricted mana pool, Jasmine had created dozens of blood spears.

Every single one had found its target.

Her control was so precise that even Arthur was not sure he could have replicated the attack at the same level.

Jasmine turned toward him.

A smug smile appeared on her face.

"What is it?"

Arthur pointed at her.

"You thief!"

Jasmine looked away.

"I do not know what you are talking about."

Arthur’s mouth twitched.

’How did she do it?’

His gaze lingered on the remnants of the blood spears.

’My Intelligence stat is leagues above hers.’

His eyes narrowed.

’Is it her natural talent?’

The System’s voice suddenly echoed inside his mind.

[ Maybe you are dumber than her. ]

Arthur’s expression darkened.

’Shut up.’

A cold announcement echoed through the corridor.

{ Iron Fortress Academy has been eliminated. }

{ Raven Academy has been eliminated. }

{ Mirage Crown Academy has been eliminated. }

{ Stormveil Academy has been eliminated. }

{ Cherry Blossom Academy has been eliminated.}

The remaining students froze.

Five academies had already been eliminated.

Christopher clicked his tongue.

"Cowards."

His voice echoed through the silent corridor.

"You deserve to die like the insects you are."

Then a voice suddenly spoke inside Christopher’s mind.

’Boy, let me borrow your body one more time.’

Christopher’s expression changed, as the voice continued.

’You will not be able to defeat him as you are right now.’

Christopher’s eyes narrowed.

’What are you saying?’

The voice answered calmly.

’I suggest escaping.’

Christopher’s jaw tightened.

He knew the voice was right.

Only moments ago, he had been confident because of their numerical advantage.

Now, his allies were gone.

His team was shrinking.

And Arthur’s group had barely revealed any of their true strength.

The voice continued.

’I already bypassed the restrictions and gave you a huge boost.’

Its tone became colder.

’But fighting them with your useless team will still get you killed.’

Christopher clenched his fists.

’Remember, we made a deal. Instead of simply using me, why do you not try being useful?’

The voice laughed.

’You really are ungrateful.’

Christopher’s expression darkened.

He looked toward the remaining 4 members of his academy.

His eyes settled on 2 boys.

"Luke."

"Ravel."

The 2 boys stepped forward.

"Plan B."

Christopher’s voice was cold.

"Our strategy has failed."

Luke and Ravel exchanged glances.

Then they grinned.

"Aye, aye, Captain."

In the next instant, both boys lunged toward Arthur’s team.

Victor’s eyes narrowed.

"Do they want to die or what?"

His grip tightened around his sword.

He stepped forward.

Then vanished.

Whoosh!

Victor appeared in front of Luke, his sword already swinging.

The blade flashed toward Luke’s neck.

But Luke did not dodge.

The sword passed straight through his body.

Victor’s eyes widened.

There was no resistance.

No blood.

No flesh.

Luke’s body simply dissolved into smoke.

"What?"

The same thing happened to Ravel.

His body transformed into smoke as Victor’s blade passed through him.

The 2 clouds of smoke slipped around Victor before rapidly reforming behind him.

They did not stop.

Instead, they continued toward Arthur.

"At least we will take you down with us!"

Luke and Ravel shouted together.

Arthur’s eyes sharpened.

His katana flashed from its sheath.

Slash!

He swung directly at Luke.

But once again, the blade passed through smoke.

Arthur’s expression changed.

’What kind of ability is this?’

Luke’s body suddenly solidified behind him.

His arms wrapped tightly around Arthur’s torso.

At the same time, Ravel’s body reformed around Arthur’s legs, locking them in place.

A strange energy began building around the 2 boys.

Arthur’s pupils shrank.

’Don’t tell me...’

Their bodies began to glow.

’They’re planning to self-destruct.’

Arthur’s expression changed instantly.

"Everyone, get the hell away from me!"

Jasmine reacted immediately.

She raised both hands.

Crack!

A massive wall of ice erupted from the ground.

The frozen barrier expanded around Evangline, Victor, Jasmine, and Rubina, sealing them behind layers of thick, crystal-blue ice.

But Rubina’s eyes widened.

"Arthur!"

She immediately tried to run toward him.

Evangline’s expression changed.

"Hey, you idiot! What are you doing?!"

Arthur struggled against the 2 boys.

"Get back!"

The glow around Luke and Ravel intensified.

Then—

BOOM!

A massive explosion swallowed the corridor.

The shockwave tore through the dungeon.

Stone walls shook violently.

Cracks spread across the floor.

Fragments of rock were blasted into the air as fire and smoke consumed everything within the passage.

For several seconds, nothing could be seen.

Only the deafening roar of the explosion remained.