Chapter 185: Capture the Heart: Part-1
Inside the monitor room, the tension was palpable.
“Why would they even leave the base and confront the enemy directly? What’s the point of this contest then?” the Principal mused aloud, a hint of amusement in her voice as she watched the chaos unfolding on the screens.
“Well….” Alaric struggled to find the words, his confusion mirrored by another professor who was equally at a loss.
The current matchups on the battlefield were as follows:
Aqualina Naiadia Vs Aurelia Scarlet
Nyx Shadowfall Vs Jack Sparrow
Helena Sunfire Vs Ashara Nightfire
Aria Zephyr Vs Kaelen Darkfang
Thalia Crimsonclaw Vs Finnian Sunfire
Leon Dragonheart Vs Kai Frostblade
Raven Noir
“If they’re going to fight like this, I would have just chosen a straightforward duel,” the Principal sighed heavily, her disappointment evident.
She had hoped to witness displays of cunning strategy, powerful attacks, alliances forming and breaking, even betrayals….. She wanted to see everything. Instead, these students were playing it safe and boring.
The most frustrating of all was Raven Noir.
“That girl… what does she even want?” the Principal asked, her finger pointing to Raven Noir, who was perched atop a mountain, sleeping peacefully.
Yes, she was sleeping, not even the slightest for the contest.
Everyone around the Principal awkwardly scratched their heads. Even they had a hard time on Raven Noir who had barely spoken a few words like ‘Hmm’ or ‘Okay’.
“Arrrh….” the Principal growled in frustration, deciding to leave, but suddenly,
‘Ssssrrrrrrrrzzzzzz’
One of the video feeds went blank, the screen flickering into darkness.
“Who is it?” the Principal asked, her interest suddenly piqued.
“I-It was the fight between Aria and Kaelen, Principal,” a professor replied nervously.
“Hmm…” the Principal nodded thoughtfully.
“Should we check that?” Delphine asked, concern etched on her face.
“No need. It’s not like they will die,” the Principal waved her hand dismissively, instructing the team to reconnect the feed, which would take some time.
‘Looks like at least someone planned everything…’ the Principal thought, a hint of amusement creeping back into her expression as she waited for the signal to return.
Meanwhile, in the midst of the chaos,
“It seems like I arrived just in time…” Aether mumbled, hiding a little way from the group. He observed Kaelen’s team, which had already obliterated Aria’s team, and now Kaelen and his other wolf teammates were glaring menacingly at Aria.
“Look at her…. even in this dire situation, she looks strong and shows no hint of fear. I suppose being trapped by a yandere made her forget what fear is…” Aether thought, marvelling at her resilience.
He was genuinely shocked when he read her report. If he were in her situation, he wasn’t sure how he would keep his sanity for even one day, let alone endure years of isolation.
He knew what he needed to do. Glancing at the mission tab that blinked slowly, indicating that she was not in imminent danger, he assessed the situation.
‘I cannot handle them all at once…’ Aether mumbled, picking up some small stones and carefully aiming towards the wolves’ noses.
He was about to shoot when,
“Masssttrrrr~”
“Hmm? Do you want to have fun too?” Aether asked, noticing Snowflake, who was nestled in his pocket, looking at him with sparkling, eager eyes.
“Masstttrrr~”
“Okay then!” Aether nodded, a smile tugging at his lips.
He tossed six stones into the air. In a matter of seconds, Snowflake leapt into action. With the agility of a master gymnast and the precision of a seasoned marksman, she used her tail to bat the stones, each one hitting its target with pinpoint accuracy.
“grfff!”
“ORR!!”
“FRRRR!!”
“WOFFF!”
“Nnnnggg!!!”
The stones struck the wolves’ noses, making each one tremble in pain. All except Kaelen, who remained unaffected, merely snorting and frowning in Aether’s direction, his eyes filled with cold and rage.
“Who is it?” Kaelen growled, his expression darkening as he ordered his lackeys to investigate.
One of the wolves, his face twisted in fury, cautiously approached the bush from which the stone had initially been thrown.
As he entered the underbrush, he saw… nothing, except for a small snake looking up at him.
Seeing the seemingly harmless and adorable creature, the wolf sighed in relief,
“What a cute sna—NOfffff—-” His eyes widened in horror as he noticed the golden crystal on the snake’s head. Before he could shout, Snowflake transformed, rapidly growing in size and wrapping her tail around him.
Within seconds, the wolf’s ribs were crushed, almost entirely broken, if not for the crystal badge on his leg that shattered and enveloped him in a protective barrier before disappearing.
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
‘Gulp’
Aether swallowed hard, witnessing Snowflake’s terrifying power. He realized he needed to keep up with her growth, or he might find himself crushed under her strength.
“Did you find anything?” Kaelen shouted, noticing the sudden silence. Frowning, he commanded another lackey to check.
Just like before, the bush rustled slightly before falling still again.
Suspicion grew among the wolves. Kaelen’s expression turned serious as he slowly walked away, instructing the others to keep an eye on Aria, who was still trying to fight back.
Kaelen and another wolf approached the bush but found no one… not even their fallen teammate.
“Someone is here,” Kaelen mumbled, about to warn the others when…
“….”
There was no one!
Kaelen’s face contorted with rage, “WHO DAREEEEE!! WHOOFFFFFFFFFF!!!” He howled in fury.
Only he and one other wolf remained.
Meanwhile,
“Run, run, run…” Aether mumbled to himself, sprinting as fast as he could with Aria slung over his shoulder.
Aether glanced to his side, seeing Snowflake in her small form hurriedly following him after finishing off the remaining wolves. She quickly jumped into his pocket.
Though he wanted to utilize Snowflake’s abilities further, he decided it was better to keep her hidden for now.
Aria took a moment to react. All she saw was a hooded figure suddenly appearing before her, scooping her up, and fleeing before the other two wolves could react.
“H-Hey!!” Aria shouted, starting to wriggle free when,
“It’s me, Aria”
Recognizing the soft voice she knew so well, she flinched, “A-Aether?”
“Yep, yours truly,” Aether answered at her and continued to run.
[+400 Affection]
Seeing him, Aria was even more shocked, “H-How did you even get in?”
“I just pissed off the Principal, and she threw me in!”
Hearing that, Aria smiled wryly, about to stop him when,
“WOOVVVVVVVV!!!!” The howling sound echoed behind them. Aether ran even faster, ‘Tsk, I need to move quicker,’ he thought, pushing himself to his limits.
The two wolves followed the scent of Aria’s blood which was bleeding from her wounds.
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