Panic erupted in the spectator boxes above as we made our way off the arena floor and into our prep room. Thea was waiting for us, clad in regal-looking white leather armor that would have been adorable on any other Vildar—if her expression hadn't been carved from stone.

  "We have a big fuckin' problem," she announced, her serious tone instantly killing any amusing thoughts I might have had. "What we thought was one monster turned out to be several. Now there are hundreds, and they're not stopping. The Oathbound thinks monster lures are at play."

  I glanced at Malcolm, who visibly steeled himself at the news. "Was it my mother?" he asked with grim resignation.

  Thea shook her head quickly. "Nah. She swore an Oath with the Oathbound—can't break that even if she wanted to. Plus, she's out there gathering Runebinders to fight. We've got thousands of people here to protect, and from what I can tell, you three are running on fumes."

  Just then, Dara appeared beside us without bothering to mask her arrival. I'd felt her presence moments before she materialized, though she seemed distracted and urgent. She placed several baseball-sized mana orbs onto a nearby counter like she was handling live grenades. "This is what we can spare right now," she stated flatly. "If you hadn't detonated the mana core in that Ironhide Ravager, we could have used that too."

  Detonated? I blinked, confused, but she vanished before I could ask.

  Suddenly, Ted was standing next to me in full physical form. Red immediately bounded over, happily licking Ted's face, which was at the perfect height for maximum slobber coverage.

  "I fuckin' knew it!" Ted snapped his fingers with satisfaction. "Something wasn't sitting right after you took out that... what was it, Onytax? The mana Winchester drained from you wasn't nearly enough to cause an explosion like that. Same thing with the light-mana and your boar monster. There were no mana cores left because you blew the damn things up!"

  "That... actually makes sense," I admitted slowly, pieces clicking into place. "There's no other way I could have handled that Class-D in a single hit."

  Ted patted Red on the head, grinning widely at us. "Kid just discovered he's smiting monsters and he's being modest about it. You one-tapped the damn thing! Let it ride!"

  "It's not exactly a useful long-term strategy," I countered with a laugh. "I need those cores. Mana isn't exactly free, you know!"

  "It is during a monster attack," Cass pointed out with practical wisdom. "When the Carapax swarmed La-Roc, there was more mana than we could use. Even afterward, when merchants were buying up pearls, they were stacking them in piles."

  "I'm still stuck on you detonating mana cores," Malcolm interjected, looking baffled. "That's actually possible?"

  Thea cut off further discussion with authority. "Of course it's possible! We don't have time for this shit right now. Absorb the mana and let's fuckin' go!"

  We rushed through halls crowded with armored figures leading civilians in various directions. Most were fleeing the area we were heading toward—which I took as a clear sign that serious fighting was imminent. Dara's mana orbs hadn't completely topped me off, but they were good enough for now. Ted had zipped back into soul-space, claiming he needed to 'keep a low profile.' More likely, he was terrified of becoming monster food.

  "It's mostly Bufunoxes," Thea explained as we jogged, her voice tight with combat urgency. "Class-E. Think bigger, meaner Lumifrax, if you know the fuckers."

  Cass and I both groaned in unison at the mention. "Yeah, we're intimately familiar," Cass muttered grimly.

  "There are also Voltghast Drifters—Class-D," Thea continued with a shudder. "Floating jellyfish. Steer clear unless you've got an Adept or two backing you up. Those shit-sticks do exactly what you'd expect: lightning bolts and ambient mana siphoning. We need to get everyone back inside the Tower where it's safe."

  We all nodded, determination crystallizing. Even Red squared his posture, radiating canine readiness to help herd people to safety.

  "Good," Thea grunted as we reached a heavy door. She shoved it open, revealing stairs leading down into a dark, rain-lashed alleyway. Thunder cracked violently overhead, echoing from multiple directions as lightning strobed across the sky, illuminating a scene straight out of an apocalypse movie.

  "Whoa," I breathed as we plunged outside. Valor instantly flared to life, overwhelming me with a chaotic flood of sensory input. Fights raged everywhere—people darting between buildings, discharges of energy I couldn't identify crackling through the air, and monsters. So many fucking monsters.

  We spilled out onto a major street where several Sylvarus staff members were frantically piling wheelbarrow-sized dead frogs while others passed mana orbs around like ammunition. These definitely weren't Lumifrax—they were easily twice as large, with four bulging eyes and two disturbingly barbed tongues lolling from their mouths like weapons made of meat.

  I shuddered, suddenly very thankful our swamp encounter back on La-Roc hadn't involved these nightmares.

  "Ben!" a voice cut through the chaos like a blade. Chas jogged up beside us, appearing completely unfazed by the apocalyptic scene. "Perfect timing. You guys are with me."

  Thea visibly faltered for a split second when she saw him, her professional composure cracking before she quickly recovered. "Ahem," she cleared her throat. "These are my charges, Blackwood."

  "Then you're with me too," Chas stated with casual authority, already turning toward a road leading deeper into Sylvarus, away from the harbor.

  Thea blinked, processed this for exactly one beat, then shrugged. "Fuck it, let's go then. Won't be much safer than sticking with him anyway."

  I couldn't have agreed more, and the relief flooding Cass's face mirrored my own perfectly. Malcolm, however, looked conflicted. As we hurried to catch up to Chas, he finally spoke, his voice tight with worry. "My mother... she's fighting somewhere out there. I should be with her."

  Chas didn't even glance back. "You'd just get in her way, kid," he said with brutal honesty. "Don't worry about it—this wasn't her doing. I can attest to that personally. Something's luring them here. Diana's already scouring the island for the source."

  As we jogged through the ongoing urban warfare, weaving between skirmishes, I noticed something odd. "Chas, you're not wearing any armor?"

  He laughed—a sharp sound like breaking glass. "Don't need armor for these fucking things. Would be a waste." He glanced back, eyes sharp as razors. "Hurry the fuck up, kids." With that, he doubled his pace, forcing us into a near-sprint that suddenly made keeping up a serious cardiovascular challenge.

  Valor continued screaming warnings about threats nearby, but we were moving so fast, dodging spells and lunging creatures, that none of it registered beyond immediate survival instincts.

  At one point, two Bufunoxes leaped from a nearby rooftop, attempting an aerial ambush. Chas reacted instantly, kicking one out of the air so hard it simply detonated into purple goo on impact. The second landed near Thea, who let out a wild cackle as her hands blurred through two different mudras before settling with fingers steepled into a perfect pyramid. Multiple streaks of raw orange and red energy lashed out like whips, striking the frog monster and frying it instantly to a smoking husk.

  It happened so fast I only caught glimpses of the runic concepts she wielded, but the sheer volatile power made every hair on my body stand on end. It felt like standing next to unstable explosives—raw, terrifying, indiscriminate destruction packed into a tiny Vildar frame.

  "Remind me not to piss you off," I muttered to Thea as she casually reached down to pluck the mana orb from the smoking corpse and tossed it to me without looking.

  "Keep these in your mana sanctums or use 'em," she instructed with professional brusqueness, already advancing.

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  Eventually, our path led us toward a large building similar in architectural style to where we'd first met Thea. Bufunoxes were actively besieging it, leaping and battering the doors with methodical violence, while two large, ghostly Voltghast Drifters hovered nearby like spectral sentinels.

  "Damn," Chas swore under his breath. He turned to us with tactical focus. "Theadora and I will take the weird floaty things. You three handle the frogs. There's a dozen people trapped inside who need to get back to the Tower. Think you can clear a path?"

  We all nodded, adrenaline singing in my veins yet overlaid with a strange, calm confidence. These frogs were only Class-E—we'd faced far worse just minutes ago in the tournament, and the combat high hadn't really worn off. I glanced at Cass and Malcolm flanking me, saw the eager, almost predatory grins they shot my way, and suddenly understood with crystal clarity.

  Oh, they were counting on me to lead the charge.

  Sighing inwardly, I stepped forward, consciously pulling my aura in tight, trying to avoid drawing attention from the hovering Voltghasts. I focused solely on the Bufunoxes slamming themselves against the building's entrance. They noticed my approach instantly, their disgusting four-eyed stares swiveling toward me with malevolent intelligence.

  Shifting Winchester into glaive form, I broke into a run—only to dive hard to the side a split second later as Valor screamed a frantic warning.

  A bolt of crackling purple lightning erupted from one of the Voltghasts, impacting where I'd been standing and blasting chunks of stone and dust into the air like a small explosion. I shot a look toward Chas, who was now wreathed in shimmering golden runes that seemed to pulse with their own heartbeat. He casually ripped a massive stone pillar straight out of the ground as if it weighed nothing and hurled it like a javelin at the Voltghast that had just attacked me.

  "Sorry about that!" he called over the din with genuine amusement. Simultaneously, a powerful aura washed over us—far denser and more potent than Valor. It was Chas unleashing his Seal, letting its presence bloom fully. It wasn't Valor, but the feeling was similar enough, resonating with the same fundamental power I'd felt when he first pushed me through the portal to Ark.

  Rebellion

  Everything about Chas's aura screamed pure, unyielding defiance against authority, against limits, against the very concept of impossible. He turned his head and grinned fiercely at me, eyes blazing like molten gold, before exploding off the ground and rocketing toward the hovering Voltghast like a human missile.

  I couldn't help but stare, momentarily mesmerized, as Chas snatched the spectral jellyfish monster out of the air and landed with a theatrical flourish. The creature erupted with violent purple lightning, but Chas seemed utterly unbothered as he tore it apart with his bare hands. Arcs of electricity skittered across a shimmering barrier of what felt like spirit-aspected mana coiling around him, deflecting the worst of the assault.

  Three more Voltghasts crested a nearby building, crackling as they prepared their own coordinated attack, but Valor's sharp mental nudge snapped me back to immediate threats.

  Spinning just in time to avoid a barbed tongue lashing out from one of the Bufunoxes, I brought Winchester up defensively—only for Cass to dash past in a blur, her borrowed Hullcracker slicing the monster cleanly in half with surgical precision. She hadn't had time to return the massive blade after our tournament event, and seeing it in action again, I certainly wasn't complaining.

  Before I could even register relief, another tongue whipped out like a living whip, wrapping tight around the arm holding Winchester. Piercing pain flared as the barbs dug through the gaps between my armor's scales, finding flesh with cruel efficiency.

  A blast of focused orange energy from Malcolm severed the tongue with an audible snap that made me wince in sympathy. I spun, driving Winchester's blade deep into the offending Bufunox. It exploded in a shower of purple goo that splattered across my front, and I spat reflexively.

  "These things are absolutely the worst," I grumbled, just as Valor screamed an urgent warning. Too late.

  I tried to shove mana into a defensive posture, but it was useless. Purple lightning engulfed me like liquid agony, every muscle in my body seizing involuntarily. I dropped hard to my knees, hitting the ground with a thud that jarred my teeth. Couldn't move, couldn't even scream—just frozen in a cage of my own paralyzed flesh.

  The initial agony faded quickly into spreading numbness, that pins-and-needles sensation of a limb fallen asleep, but everywhere. Moving took conscious, sluggish effort that felt like swimming through molasses. I dimly realized another barbed tongue was wrapped around my leg, the pain throbbing dully beneath the numbness—a sensation I knew wouldn't stay dull for long.

  I swung Winchester weakly at it, only slicing partway through the tough muscle. Then Cass was there, severing the tongue completely before hauling me back to my feet with a firm grip.

  "Gaia's tits! That was a wild blast you just took," she said, steadying me. "You good?"

  I shook my head, more to clear lingering disorientation than in negation. "Yeah... yeah, I'm good." My gaze flickered toward Chas. He was standing amidst the remaining Voltghasts, actually laughing as they pummeled him with coordinated lightning strikes. The electricity had burned away his shirt, revealing a bare chest covered in the same intricate, glowing golden runes as his arms—absorbing or redirecting the energy surges like a living lightning rod.

  Feeling prickled back into my limbs, swiftly followed by sharp, undeniable pain from the barb wounds in my arm and leg. Gritting my teeth, I was about to charge the remaining frogs when a different warning pressed urgently against Valor's field. Not an incoming attack, but an intense, overwhelming need to—

  "Move!" I yelled, grabbing Cass and diving sideways, pulling her down with me just as a roaring geyser of white-hot flame erupted where we'd been standing. The searing wave slammed into the remaining Bufunoxes, incinerating them instantly in a blaze that made the air shimmer.

  Craning my head from the ground, I saw Red braced on all fours, belching fire like some kind of furry dragon. Nearby, Malcolm held a complex mudra, his hands shaping and compressing the inferno into a focused, devastating jet. Even from a few meters away, the heat was nearly unbearable.

  Once the flames dissipated, Malcolm pumped his fist in the air and enthusiastically patted Red, who responded with an excited little paw-tapping dance. "I knew it would work!" Malcolm crowed, grinning from ear to ear.

  "What the fuck was that?!" I yelled back, annoyance flaring amidst relief. "Some warning next time, maybe?!"

  Red instantly pulled his ears back in apology, and Malcolm had the grace to look sheepish. "Uh, sorry about that!"

  Cass and I scrambled to our feet and rushed toward the smoking doors of the besieged building. We yanked them open, revealing the entrance hall of what looked like a student dormitory. It was pitch black inside, though I could make out unlit lantern orbs hanging in wall holders.

  We plunged in, and something immediately pressed against Valor's senses—multiple presences, huddled and afraid. Shoving light-mana into Winchester, I flooded the hall with stark white radiance.

  "Monster or mortal?" I called out sharply, weapon ready.

  "Mortal! We're mortal!" a timid voice replied, and several figures emerged hesitantly from the shadows. They looked like Aldertree and Carmintree students, none appearing much older than teenagers. "Are you... are you Monster Hunters?" one asked with wide eyes.

  "Almost," I managed a weak laugh that I hoped was reassuring. "But we're here with Chas Blackwood and Thea Glass. They sent us to get you to the Tower."

  The mention of those names visibly eased their tension immediately. Recognition dawned on another boy's face. "Wait, aren't you the Breaker? The one who was fighting in the tournament earlier?"

  I nodded, feeling a surge of perhaps misplaced confidence. Channeling my inner action hero, I struck what I hoped was a heroic pose. "I am. Come with me if you want to live."

  The words were barely out before I regretted them completely. They all just nodded back with unnerving, wide-eyed resolve that made it clear they were taking me seriously. I could practically hear Ted groaning at my terrible line from inside soul-space. Even Cass shot me a look that screamed

  Still, I guess it got the point across.

  Risking a peek back outside, I saw Chas standing defiantly in the street, now surrounded by at least a dozen hovering Voltghasts. "Come on, you fucking assholes!" he yelled, deliberately drawing their fire with arms spread wide. "Give me everything you've got!"

  As they clustered tighter, preparing another coordinated volley, a series of massive, fiery explosions suddenly rocked the street. Literal fireballs launched from a side alley, obliterating half a dozen jellyfish monsters in concussive blasts that lit up the night. Thea let out a triumphant whoop from the alleyway as she reloaded another glowing silver coin into her ridiculous weapon. The muzzle glowed white-hot, but, impressively; it hadn't exploded... yet.

  Malcolm and Red, seeing their chance, focused their combined fire-breathing assault on the remaining Voltghasts. Malcolm quickly motioned that they'd cover our retreat with the students while we made our escape.

  Cass and I signaled the teenagers to follow, and we sprinted out, weaving past the ongoing carnage toward the safe zone near the Tower where we'd first met Chas. The run back went faster than expected, the relief of the rescued students palpable as hope replaced terror on their faces.

  Before we knew it, they were scrambling up the tower steps to safety, their grateful shouts echoing behind them. A wave of satisfaction washed over me—we'd actually saved them. Real people. But the job wasn't done; Chas and Thea were still out there in the war zone.

  "Let's go back," I said to Cass, turning toward the distant sounds of battle. She grinned with anticipation, ready for round two, when suddenly...

  The world shifted.

  Without warning, the rain stopped. The sounds of battle—explosions, crackling lightning, desperate shouting—vanished instantly like someone had hit a cosmic mute button. One moment we were standing on rain-slicked cobblestone amidst fiery chaos; the next we stood frozen in a bizarre, multicolored jungle vaguely reminiscent of the Monster Hunter Tower lobby.

  The air was thick and humid, carrying strange scents and the sound of low growls mixed with a loud, guttural crooning that echoed from somewhere deeper within the alien foliage. Plants that shouldn't exist swayed without wind, their colors too vibrant, too wrong.

  Cass spun toward me, her eyes wide with disbelief as we both took in the impossible transformation of our surroundings.

  "What the fuck just happened?" I breathed, utterly bewildered, my voice barely audible in the sudden, oppressive silence.

  Cass didn't answer immediately. Her face had gone chalk white, her earlier combat grin replaced by raw, primal panic. The strange growls and crooning seemed to get closer, unsettlingly loud in the unnatural quiet. When she finally spoke, her voice cracked with terror.

  "It's... Gaia's tits, Ben... it's a spirit realm."

  The Kent family name used to mean something. In a world of food-themed magic, the Kents ranked among the top Chefs. They used their magic to conquer kitchen and wilderness alike, becoming legends of cooking and combat.

  But after two generations of failure, the name is a relic of the past. Now Archie Kent, on the eve of his eighteenth birthday, has one last chance to manifest magical abilities in the hope of attending the prestigious Academy of Ambrosia and restoring his family name.

  Today is the Festival of Ambrosia, and it’s Archie’s turn in the kitchen…