As Eros’s thoughts raced, the monster’s tentacles were already whipping toward his face.

  Facing the onslaught, Eros suppressed his distractions and chanted under his breath: "Life Cage!"

  Instead of dodging, he chose to tank the hit head-on. Countless vines erupted from the ground, weaving into a dense spherical cage that locked Eros inside. There was no rule saying control spells could only be used on enemies.

  Another thunderous CRACK echoed through the hall. Eight tentacles slammed into the cage, snapping more than half of the vines connecting the structure to the earth. Fortunately, the cage held firm.

  Eros immediately dissolved the spell. Stepping out, he delivered a powerful kick that sent Baron Larry Watt flying. The man soared across the training ground, only stopping when he slammed into the distant stone wall.

  "There's something wrong with the monster's chest," Barbara’s voice rang in his mind. "There’s an object inside—likely the source of the contamination. Find a chance to seize it."

  Eros gave a nearly imperceptible nod, his expression remaining mask-like and calm. If he wanted that item, his window of opportunity was closing fast; the academy’s response team was undoubtedly on their way.

  Time to end this quickly.

  He ran his left hand along the blade again. The barely-healed wound in his palm split open, and blood welled out once more. Staring at the machete coated in his own essence, Eros whispered: "Ignite!"

  The moment the command left his lips, emerald-green flames erupted from the blade—Life-fire, fueled by his very blood. Eros stopped holding back. Brandishing the flaming machete, he lunged at the monster, his voice a continuous stream of incantations:

  "Forest Entanglement! Vine Bind! Thorn Pierce! Wrath of Nature!"

  Over a dozen spells hammered into the creature in rapid succession. Simultaneously, he hacked at the monster with the emerald-flamed blade. The fire spread from the steel to the monster’s hide, eventually engulfing its entire form.

  The creature’s agonized shrieks made the students hiding in the distance wince, their skin crawling with visceral discomfort.

  As the screams gradually faded, Eros manipulated a hidden vine beneath the carnage. In a movement unnoticed by the crowd, the vine hooked an object out from the monster’s dissolving chest and dropped it onto Eros’s shadow. In a flash, the item sank into the darkness and vanished.

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  Only then did the academy’s containment team arrive.

  The squad wore sea-blue uniforms—the Punisher Team of the Church of the Sea, stationed at the academy. The captain first glanced at the heap of emerald flames, then at Eros, who stood nearby looking slightly pale. He gestured for his men to secure the perimeter and walked slowly toward the fire.

  As he drew closer, the captain’s relaxed expression turned grim. He had received word that a Sequence 9 student had mutated. He hadn't thought much of it; how strong could a Sequence 9 monster be? But as he sensed the residual aura and the density of the contamination, he realized this was far from simple.

  Based on the spiritual pressure, this creature had reached at least Sequence 7. For a Sequence 9 to skip a rank through mutation required a terrifyingly potent source. Moreover, how had such a source appeared inside the academy?

  The Punisher captain took a deep breath. "Auro! Go to the vault immediately and request Grade-3 Sealed Artifact: The Sun’s Heart. John! Investigate everyone who left the area after the mutation began. Find out who they met and bring them all here."

  After issuing orders, the captain turned to Eros, pointing at the charred remains with surprise. "You killed this?"

  Eros nodded calmly.

  "You’re the heir to the Rose Duke, the one with the Elven bloodline?" the captain asked.

  Eros nodded again.

  "I heard you took leave to advance to Sequence 7. So, you’ve succeeded?"

  Eros nodded for the third time.

  "Hah! Killing a Sequence 7 monster immediately after advancing... is this the power of an Ancient Lineage?" The captain looked impressed, clearly attributing Eros’s prowess to his Elven heritage. Eros didn't bother to correct him; a misinterpretation worked in his favor.

  Soon, a group of panicked students was ushered back into the training ground—those who had tried to flee earlier. A moment later, Auro returned carrying a box made of an unknown, obsidian-like material.

  "Have every student who looked at the monster stay within the range of The Sun’s Heart for five minutes," the captain ordered sternly. "Purify any potential contamination, then check them with the Mirror of Revelation."

  The captain watched the monster’s smoldering corpse for a moment before looking at Eros. "Can you speed up the purification?"

  Eros paused, then nodded. "I can."

  He drew the blade across his wrist, letting a fresh stream of blood fall into the green flames. The fire roared, swelling several times its size instantly.

  Watching this, the captain suddenly remarked, "I heard a small cup of your blood is being traded for 350 Gold Pounds on the black market, and you’re still unwilling to sell? You’re burning quite a lot of gold right now."

  The captain looked genuinely pained, as if it were his own coins being consumed by the fire.

  Eros: "..."

  Receiving no reply, the captain gave a dry laugh and fell silent. With the addition of Eros’s blood, the corpse was quickly reduced to ash. Only a few scattered fragments of pure white solid and a yellowish-brown crystal remained.

  Eros stared at the white fragments in surprise. So, even contaminated humans produce Spirit Marrow?

  The captain, however, frowned. He knelt to pick up the yellowish-brown crystal. "If the contamination was only at this level, he couldn't have jumped from Sequence 9 to Sequence 7. What exactly happened here?"

  Eros kept his gaze lowered, his heart still, and said absolutely nothing.