The classroom fell deathly silent in an instant.

  Everyone lapsed into hush, their faces all frozen in dumbfounded shock.

  After a long moment, Harold turned to the other man, his voice firm. “Bring the other Flesh Wraith fragment.”

  He was no specialist—he couldn’t possibly make sense of what had happened. His first instinct was that it was just an accident.

  Maybe that fragment had been used far too many times.

  Was it just worn out?

  Moments later,

  the second Flesh Wraith fragment was carried in, another writhing lump of slimy flesh.

  They’d only brought two such fragments with them to Blackwater City that day.

  Harold took a deep breath and said, “You’re John, right? Relax, and try again.”

  “Sir, I don’t think that’s necessary.”

  John waved a hand, already reluctant to step forward.

  Devouring a wraith could get him potions, which was a boon, but one was more than enough. If he ate too many, he’d risk blowing his cover…

  He had no desire to be dragged away and used as a lab rat.

  “No!”

  Harold barked at once. “We will not let a single prodigy go to waste!”

  “……”

  John opened his mouth to argue, but he had no retort for that.

  “No pressure, just take it easy.”

  “……”

  John could only nod, stepping forward again to close his hand around the Flesh Wraith fragment.

  At the exact same moment, the eerie ghostly face twisted into a look of pure elation, materializing silently on John’s palm once more.

  It never would have thought free food would fall right into its lap like this.

  A full-strength Flesh Wraith would have been impossible for it to devour,

  but the lump before it was merely a sliver of the true Flesh Wraith’s body—a wounded, feeble spirit, essentially. The ghostly face would never pass up such a feast.

  THUMP-THUMP-THUMP!

  In the blink of an eye, the Flesh Wraith fragment thrashed wildly again, its throbbing roar ringing out through the entire classroom.

  “Yes! That’s the sound! That’s the reaction!”

  Harold had traveled to seven or eight cities and tested countless students, but he’d never seen a Flesh Wraith fragment react like this.

  If he could truly unlock such a talent, the rewards coming his way would be substantial indeed.

  “Fuck you, you bastard!”

  The Flesh Wraith raged venomously in its core, but it was useless.

  Moments later, a deafening pop rang out—and the flesh burst apart once more.

  Everyone’s expressions froze in turn…

  Gone again? It’s gone again?

  Harold was dumbfounded too.

  “Uh… what the…”

  His eyes bulged, and he stared in stupefaction for a long while.

  “Sir, maybe we should call it quits…”

  John stepped forward then, feigning a sympathetic tone, as if trying to comfort him.

  “Don’t say a word!”

  Harold squeezed his eyes shut, then said, “Request a higher-grade Flesh Wraith fragment from the higher-ups!”

  “……”

  John’s mouth twitched, and he thought to himself,

  Seriously? People just hand out free gifts like this these days?

  “We’ll suspend the Awakening Ritual for today. We resume tomorrow!”

  Harold planned to report John’s case first, then suddenly thought of something and turned to William. “Oh, and you two students with Bound Wraiths—government agents will be in touch with you later to brief you on the Wraith Studies Program.”

  “This era needs people exactly like you.”

  The words sent William and the other boy’s blood racing. Who would have thought they’d suddenly become the protagonists of the age?

  Moments later,

  Harold left Blackwater City with the rest of his team.

  Without any Flesh Wraith fragments left, they could no longer awaken Bound Wraiths for the other students.

  The second they were gone, the entire school erupted into a frenzy. Every conversation revolved around Bound Wraiths,

  and every voice was thick with envy and jealousy.

  No one fully understood what a Bound Wraith truly meant, but from the government’s attitude, it was clear that anyone who had one would become part of a special group of people.

  “Nice one, Will.”

  John raised an eyebrow, walking over to William and running a hand over the coffin he sat atop.

  A bone-chilling cold washed over him at once, laced with an eerie, thrumming sensation—as if he were touching something alive.

  “Boss John, those dreams I’ve been having every night? They were a good thing all along!”

  William’s eyes blazed with excitement, and he caressed the coffin beneath him, utterly enamored.

  From what Harold had said, his future would be a path unlike any other.

  John smiled faintly. “Guess I’ll be counting on you to have my back from now on.”

  “Are you kidding?”

  William waved his hand frantically. “Boss John, don’t make fun of me.”

  If John’s performance was anything to go by, his Bound Wraith—when it finally awakened—would be anything but ordinary.

  John shrugged, choosing not to explain further.

  Only he knew the truth: the Flesh Wraith fragments’ bizarre reactions had nothing to do with a Bound Wraith, but with the vengeful wraith lurking inside him.

  ……

  The next day arrived in the blink of an eye,

  and true to his word, Harold showed up, making a straight line for John.

  Word of John’s incident had spread throughout the entire school in a single night.

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  The halls outside Class 1, Senior 3 were packed with onlookers, all eager to witness this miracle.

  They might not be the main characters, but seeing this with their own eyes would give them a story to brag about for years to come.

  John sat calmly at his desk, occasionally pressing a hand to his chest.

  He’d devoured two Flesh Wraith fragments the day before, but the ghostly face had given him no potions that night.

  He couldn’t help but wonder if those two lumps of flesh had been too weak, their power insufficient to forge a potion.

  He had no idea that both fragments were merely tiny slivers of a single, full-strength vengeful wraith.

  “Come on, try again!”

  Just then, Harold walked into the classroom with his team, his gaze locking onto John at once.

  “Alright!”

  John nodded and stood up, showing no sign of refusal.

  If you can’t fight it, might as well enjoy it.

  After all, this only brought him benefits…

  Under the watch of the crowd’s eager eyes, he reached out again to begin the “awakening.”

  The flesh fragment in his hand was larger than the ones from yesterday—an enhanced version, clearly.

  The second his fingers closed around it, the fragment seized up in abject terror and began to thrash wildly.

  THUMP-THUMP-THUMP!

  The thunderous throbbing sounded again, sending a wave of excitement through the onlookers.

  “Please, just awaken already…”

  Harold clenched his fists tight, staring fixatedly at John, daring not even to blink.

  On John’s palm, the ghostly face stretched into a sinister grin.

  Its mouth gaped open, and it began to chew slowly, contentedly.

  The second the Flesh Wraith was completely devoured, the fragment in John’s hand burst apart—exactly like the day before.

  The crowd was left stunned speechless in an instant.

  Harold’s brows furrowed deeply. “Seriously? Is your Bound Wraith really this stubborn to awaken?!”

  “……”

  John’s mouth twitched, unable to explain.

  You can’t awaken something that doesn’t exist…

  “Uh… sir…”

  “Don’t say a word! I’m thinking!”

  “……”

  A glint of what he thought was wisdom flashed in Harold’s eyes, his mind racing a mile a minute.

  After a long moment, he took a deep breath and said slowly, “I brought another Flesh Wraith fragment. Try again.”

  “……”

  John’s mouth fell open. This is what he came up with after all that thinking?!

  Also, dude, are you really this stubborn?

  Moments later, another Flesh Wraith fragment was brought forward.

  Perhaps because it had witnessed everything, it began to thrash madly even before John drew near.

  “Is this what a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy looks like?!”

  Harold was struck dumb with awe. To elicit such a reaction without even touching the fragment?

  At Harold’s words, the Flesh Wraith writhed even more violently, roaring curses in its core.

  Are you out of your goddamn mind?! Who says that shit?!

  Moments later,

  this fragment burst apart too, no surprises at all.

  “Again!”

  BOOM!

  “Again!”

  BOOM!

  ……

  In just half an hour, seven Flesh Wraith fragments burst apart on the spot—a brutal, gruesome sight.

  “This is insane…”

  Harold stared at the carnage, utterly at a loss for what to do.

  After a long moment, he turned to John, his voice blank and stunned. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

  It was clear he’d lost all ability to think for himself by now.

  “Uh… do I need to pay for these?”

  “???”

  The corner of Harold’s eye twitched violently. He let out a heavy sigh and said, “We’ll call it a day for now. I can’t keep this up.”

  “Should we try again tomorrow? I think I can keep going!”

  “……”

  Harold didn’t even bother to reply,

  You might be able to keep going, but I sure as hell can’t!

  “We’ll see tomorrow. I need to go report this and ask for instructions.”

  He sighed, turning to leave with his team in tow…

  This kid’s case was far beyond his ability to judge.

  Just as the crowd was preparing to head for the school gate, a man in his early thirties stepped out of a taxi right then.

  “Instructor Ron?!”

  Harold’s expression shifted in an instant, and he snapped to attention at once, his eyes filled with profound respect.

  Ron was not old, but his status was exceedingly high—

  for he was a specialist who dealt with the supernatural for a living.

  “Harold. What’s the hurry? Finished already?”

  Ron raised an eyebrow, saying, “Impressive work rate. You’ll get a promotion in no time.”

  “Instructor, it’s not that we’re finished. We never even started…”

  “Hm?”

  Ron blinked in surprise, then a look of shock crossed his face. “Don’t tell me that anomaly from yesterday crushed seven more Flesh Wraith fragments?!”

  He’d been swamped with handling supernatural incidents in Blackwater City, but he’d still made time to read Harold’s report from the day before.

  In fact, it had been his authorization that let Harold get his hands on seven more fragments.

  Harold’s face twisted with bitterness, and he nodded miserably.

  “That’s ridiculous.”

  Ron raised an eyebrow, then said, “Luckily, I’ve got one more Flesh Wraith fragment in my bag. Let’s try it.”

  “But we’ve already lost nine of them…”

  “It’s fine. Worst case, we just get someone to chop up the main Flesh Wraith some more. It can take it.”

  “……”