With a groan, Seth pushed himself up, his muscles aching from the fight. The small forest clearing nearby was a wreck. The ground was scarred with deep trenches from both the Gale Hawk’s wind blades and the Thorn-Legged Mantis’ strikes, and the metallic tang of blood lingered in the air.

  His eyes then moved down once more to his hand to look this time at his aether attunement.

  My manipulation and Darkness affinity each increased, Seth thought with a smile.

  'Identify me,' Nightmare growled, impatient as always. 'Please.'

  Seth rolled his eyes, but obliged, casting the spell on the direwolf, who was licking a gash.

  Nightmare looked at his own stats through Seth’s shared vision, a low grumble rumbling in his chest. 'At this rate, none of us will be close to Rank 50 by the time the war begins.'

  Seth sighed, running a hand through his sweat-matted hair. "I know."

  The idea of being thrown into a Warfare Rift against enemies who were on average ten or twenty Ranks higher than him was a deeply unpleasant one. And that wasn't even taking into account that the empire's soldiers would undoubtedly have better gear, stronger spells, and more-cohesive training.

  'Our squad will get butchered,' Nightmare stated flatly, 'especially if the enemy has one of those devices that stops people from using Escape Scrolls.'

  Seth frowned, caught slightly off guard. Our squad.

  Nightmare had just included himself in the group—something he had never done before. Seth had a good guess as to the reason behind that shift: Henry. The ever-enthusiastic Warrior had made a point of treating Nightmare as an equal during the squad’s skirmishes, always recognizing his contributions and making sure he felt like part of the team.

  Seth then thought about the other squads from the academy. According to Devus, Jenna, and even Henry, the squads 1 through 10 were filled with incredibly strong Wielders and were in a league of their own. Seth believed his friends, to an extent, but a part of him felt there had to be some exaggeration.

  For example, Elena was in Squad 1. Sure, she was one of the strongest first-years alongside her brother, but when he’d seen the ranking yesterday, she was still only Rank 38. Odds were she would still struggle terribly against the Bridan Empire’s Rank 50s Wielders when the war began in a little more than five weeks.

  Today would have been a good opportunity to see her in action: squads 1 through 6 were holding exhibition skirmishes in the academy’s main training yard. But Seth had opted to hunt instead, figuring the direct combat experience for Colossus and the attribute boost were a better use of his time.

  'We could still go watch,' Nightmare said, obviously reading Seth’s thoughts. 'It would be stupid to continue hunting today since Small Bite is injured.'

  Seth raised an eyebrow. "Since when have you ever wanted to stop hunti—" He halted mid-sentence, a sudden suspicion dawning on him. "Don’t tell me you want to go cheer for Elena."

  Nightmare raised his muzzle, a strong projection of pride surging through their bond. 'Of course not. I am merely proposing it for your benefit. I know that deep down you still see her as a potential mating partner.'

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  "Oh, shut—" Seth began, but his words were cut short by a sudden, powerful rush of aether flowing through Link, and his head whipped around to look at Colossus.

  The scorpion was vibrating intensely, a low hum emanating from his very being. The air around him was heavy, filled with raw, untamed Earth aether as the young's beast Well pulsed vividly in his chest.

  Seth smiled—the scorpion was ascending to the Iron Tier.

  For a moment, Seth felt a subtle transformation occurring in his own body. Expanding his senses inward, he perceived his skin and bones hardening as a torrent of Earth aether flooded Link and plunged into his Well.

  Then, as Seth shifted his focus back to Colossus, a flicker of fear rippled through him. Something was wrong—the scorpion was struggling. The Tier-up process, which was usually smooth and painless, now felt strained, as if Colossus were pushing against something impossibly heavy.

  Seth’s brow furrowed. Why is he struggling? The breakthrough shouldn't require any effort.

  'It’s his new spell,' Nightmare answered, his crimson eyes narrowing. 'He’s not letting it form on its own—he’s trying to shape it himself.'

  Seth frowned and pushed his consciousness into the scorpion, peering into the chaotic swirl of aether inside his Well. New grooves were being carved, not by the natural unfolding of a Revelation, but by a powerful act of will. Seth could feel Colossus’s raw and fierce intent forcing the nascent channels to bend, twist, and etch themselves into a pattern of his choosing.

  A single, overwhelming thought dominated the scorpion’s mind: Protect.

  Through Link, Seth could feel his aim: forging a spell that would have allowed him to shield them from the Gale-Hawk’s devastating wind-blades. Colossus didn't want to ever feel that helplessness he’d just experienced.

  The nascent grooves inside the scorpion resisted, trying to follow preset paths, but the young beast's stubborn determination didn’t falter. Not even for a second.

  The air around him crackled as he meticulously carved trenches for the aether to flow where he commanded. Every inch of progress came with extreme pain, yet he pressed on.

  Then, a minute later, with a final surge, it was done. The chaotic energy within Colossus settled, and the newly carved grooves glowed with a powerful hazel light. The moment the scorpion slumped, drained from the effort, a wave of pure joy swelled through Link.

  A grin was forming on Seth’s face when Nightmare suddenly bounced eagerly beside him. 'Bloody hell, Identify him!'

  "Relax," Seth answered with a laugh, though he could also barely hold back his excitement. "I was already going to."

  The moment Colossus's updated attributes appeared in the corner of Seth’s vision, his attention was snagged by the absurdly high Toughness—then it was drawn to the scorpion’s newly forged spell.

  "Gold and Epic," Seth breathed, the words barely a whisper in the forest’s breeze. "Holy shit."

  Seth frowned. A protective barrier that blocked ranged attacks sounded incredible, but the description was vague on how strong it actually was.

  'Cast it, Small Bite! Let’s see this spell!' Nightmare urged.

  Colossus, despite his exhaustion, pushed himself up. He lumbered about fifty feet away from them, then reared back. For a few seconds, a massive amount of Earth aether accumulated within him, his carapace glowing with an intense brown light. Then, it exploded outwards.

  A dome of swirling sand erupted into existence, shimmering in the sunlight. It expanded quickly, forming a perfect hemisphere nearly fifteen feet in radius; the individual grains moved so fast they were just a blur, yet the overall structure seemed solid, almost crystalline.

  Curious, Seth stepped inside the dome. The air within was noticeably warmer, and he could feel the faint prickle of heat against his skin. The forest surrounding them was barely obscured—not enough to hinder them during a fight.

  'Small Bite, you have surpassed yourself!' Nightmare exclaimed, stepping into the dome beside Seth. 'You just crafted the perfect anti-Elementalist spell.'

  Seth smiled, reaching out to pat Colossus’s earthy carapace. 'He sure did.'

  But to Seth, it was more than just a counter for Elementalists. Depending on its durability, this could also block arcane cannon fire. Something we might face in those Warfare Rifts.

  This spell would certainly save their asses at some point in the future.

  Later that afternoon, Seth found himself walking along a wide, cobblestone path that wound its way toward the academy’s extensive backyard. The bone-deep weariness from the fight against the mantis and the hawk had faded, leaving only the lingering thrill of Colossus’s ascension.

  'Later tonight we’ll go test Colossus’s new spell in one of the Epic Training Chambers,' he said to Nightmare, a grin touching his lips. 'The One-Horned Imp will give us a perfect opponent to do so.'

  'Yes!' the direwolf’s enthusiasm echoed in Seth’s mind. 'We’ll crush that small demon with our eyes closed!'

  'Yeah,' Seth answered, gazing up.

  In the distance ahead, something new dominated the landscape. Dozens upon dozens of freshly built wooden stands rose in tiers, creating a temporary amphitheater around the main training fields. As he drew closer, he realized the raw, pale wood still carried the sharp scent of pine sap. The smell and the sheer size of the construction made Seth wonder if it had been created by some kind of spell.

  Or maybe the director had hired an army of laborers to build it overnight? he thought.

  Seth spotted numbers painted on the sides of each section and guessed they were meant for squads to sit together and spectate the much-talked-about exhibition squads’ fights. He located the stand marked with a large '48' and made his way up the sturdy wooden steps.

  Near the top, he found Henry already seated with most of their squad, including the other deputy, Eddin, a burly Guardian with short brown hair. Selena sat just behind Henry, her light-red hair tied into a neat braid, eyes fixed on the arena below. She looked exhausted—as if she had trained all day before coming to watch the fight..

  As Seth approached, a large grin immediately spread across Henry’s face, and he waved energetically. "Seth! What a surprise!"

  Seth navigated through the packed bench and sat beside him, nodding at the others. Selena gave him a faint smile in return from behind Henry.

  "Weren't you supposed to be out hunting all day?" Henry asked, nudging him.

  "Yeah," Seth replied, stretching his stiff shoulders. "Had a rough fight this morning, though. So I decided to take the afternoon off to recover."

  "You and Nightmare alright?" Henry pressed, his usual joviality now tinged with concern.

  Seth nodded. "Yeah, we're fine. We just pushed ourselves a bit too much."

  "That's good news," Eddin said beside the Warrior. "We can't afford to lose two of our most valuable soldiers only a few weeks before the war begins."

  "Yeah, exactly," Henry added, his expression turning serious. "And that's why you'll need to be extra careful at Oskon, Seth. Those bastards from the Bridan Empire… they’ll probably try to cripple you before the real war even starts."

  Seth knew Henry was right. In just two days, he, along with Elena, her brother, and a select few other second- and third-year students deemed promising enough, would leave for Kastal’s capital Oskon. The border city would host a series of "diplomatic" exhibition skirmishes against representatives of the Bridan Empire while the higher-ups from both nations supposedly negotiated the terms and rewards of the upcoming war. For the empire, it was a chance to send a clear message by crushing their foe… while for Kastal, it was more about not losing face.

  "I’ll make sure to come back in one piece," Seth said, even though he knew the odds were he would get his ass kicked if he didn’t use Phantom Punch or Nightmare. Professor Reat would definitely ask him to hold onto those to avoid drawing too much attention from the higher-ups of both nations. In case they knew about Draeria.

  Down on the enormous field, the two squads, composed of fifty students each, began to move into formation; Warriors and Guardians set up a front line while Elementalists and Priests positioned themselves at the rear, ready to unleash their support from a distance.

  "Which ones are up first?" Seth asked.

  “Squad 1 and Squad 4,” Selena answered from behind.

  Henry glanced over his shoulder to look at the Rogue, then smiled. "Yeah, this should be good."

  Seth nodded, his gaze sweeping across the hundred Wielders on the field. He quickly spotted Elena among the fifty students arrayed on the left side. She stood at the very back of her squad, her crimson hair a striking splash of color amid the teammates around her.

  The noblewoman wore an elegant, rune-etched scarlet robe with gold stripes on the sides, and she had a slender, darkwood staff inlaid with glowing sapphires clutched in her hand. Even from this distance, she radiated a calm, commanding presence.

  Alright, Elena, Seth thought with a smirk. Let's see how strong you really are.

  (Updated):

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  Thank you so much for reading!

  want it, not just to protect. Don’t worry, that moment will come… but for now, he’s going to be a good boy and protect everyone :))

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  22 23 advanced chapters on !