Chapter 17: The Professor of Pain and the Missing Floor (Part 2)
Location: Basement Level 4 (The Hidden Lab).
Time: 10:15 PM.
Status: Combat (Impossible Difficulty).
Ren landed in a crouch amidst the shattered glass of the skylight.
The lab was sterile, white, and humming with the sound of tortured souls. To his left, Professor Vexis cowered behind a console. To his right, Cardinal Malthus stood calm and terrible, his red robes pristine amidst the falling debris.
"Level 60," Ren calculated, his heart hammering against his ribs. "One hit. If he lands one hit, I'm ash."
Malthus raised a gloved hand. He didn't chant. He didn't gesture wildly. He simply pointed a finger.
[ Spell: Ray of Judgment (Rank A) ]
A beam of concentrated holy light, thin as a needle and hot as a star, shot toward Ren's heart.
Ren didn't dodge. He couldn't dodge light.
He Predicted.
[ Analytical Eye: Intent Read. ]
[ Flash Step. ]
Ren vanished a microsecond before the beam fired.
HISS.
The beam pierced the floor where Ren had been standing, melting a hole straight through the reinforced concrete foundation.
Ren reappeared behind a row of glass tanks.
"Fast," Malthus commented, sounding bored. "For a rat."
The Cardinal swept his hand horizontally.
[ Spell: Wall of Light. ]
A shimmering barrier of hard-light expanded outward, slicing through tables and chairs like a guillotine. It was sweeping toward Ren, cutting off his escape route.
Ren looked at the tanks next to him. Inside, a suspended student—a girl from Terran House—twitched in the green fluid.
"I need chaos," Ren decided.
He drew his Prisoner's Shiv. He didn't attack Malthus.
He attacked the Mana Conduits running along the floor—the pipes feeding the energy from the tanks to the central machine.
CLANG. SHUNK.
Ren severed the main pressure valve.
HISSSSS!
Pressurized mana fluid sprayed out like a fire hose. It was volatile, glowing neon green.
"NO!" Professor Vexis screamed. "The containment! It's unstable!"
The fluid hit the Wall of Light.
BOOM.
Raw mana reacts violently with Holy Magic. The resulting explosion shattered the nearest three tanks.
Glass flew everywhere.
Fluid flooded the floor.
And three students fell out of their pods, gasping, coughing up green slime. Their eyes snapped open. They were glowing entirely white—Mana Overload.
"SCREEEEEE!"
The students didn't see Ren or Malthus. They saw enemies everywhere. They began to cast wild, uncontrolled magic. One fired lightning into the ceiling. Another blasted wind that knocked over the instrument trays.
"Contain them!" Malthus ordered Vexis, his voice finally showing a trace of annoyance. "Do not let the subjects expire!"
Malthus turned his attention to the students, casting a [Mass Sleep] spell to subdue the assets.
Ren saw his window.
He didn't run for the vent—it was destroyed. He ran for the Elevator Shaft.
He sprinted across the wet floor, sliding under a stray lightning bolt. He reached the elevator doors. They were sealed.
Ren jammed his Shiv into the seam. With his Gauntlet-enhanced Strength, he pried them open.
There was no car. Just a dark shaft and grease-slicked cables going up.
Ren jumped.
He grabbed the cable.
"Going up," Ren grunted.
He began to climb.
Below him, Malthus finished subduing the students. He looked at the open elevator doors.
"You cannot run from the Light, boy," Malthus whispered.
He pointed his finger up the shaft.
[ Spell: Ascension Bolt. ]
A ball of light shot up the shaft, tracking Ren's heat signature.
Ren looked down. A miniature sun was rushing toward him.
"Grim!" Ren shouted internally. "Shield!"
Grim dove into the Archive. He found the [Grimoire of the Devouring Void].
Ren stopped climbing. He hung by one hand. He reached down with his Gauntlet.
He couldn't drain a spell this big. It would overload him.
But he could deflect it.
[ The Index Activated. ]
[ Source: 'Physics of Reflection'. ]
[ Borrowed Skill: Mirror Surface (Rank F). ]
Ren coated his Gauntlet in a layer of reflective mana. It wasn't a shield; it was a mirror.
The bolt hit his hand.
Ren screamed as the heat seared his skin through the leather. But the bolt didn't explode. It bounced.
It ricocheted off his hand, hit the shaft wall, and exploded below him.
BOOM.
The shockwave threw Ren upward.
"Free boost!" Ren choked out.
He rode the shockwave, scrambling up the last twenty feet. He reached the doors of Basement Level 3. He pried them open and rolled out onto the floor of the Archive storage room.
He slammed the doors shut.
He lay there, panting, his left hand smoking.
[ HP: 45 / 280 ]
[ Status: Moderate Burns. Mana Depletion. ]
He was alive.
Location: Umbra House, Ren's Room.
Time: 11:30 PM.
Ren stumbled into his room. He locked the door and collapsed against it.
He chugged a Vitality Potion. The burns on his hand stopped blistering, but the red, angry skin remained.
"Malthus," Ren whispered. "The Church is running the battery farm."
He pulled out the Diary of the Nameless Student he had found earlier.
He needed to know more about the Eye of Envy.
He opened the diary to the last page.
Entry 40 (Written in blood):
It's not just the failed students. It's the winners too. The 'Eye' feeds on competition. The more we hate each other, the stronger it gets. The Ranking System... the House Points... it's all a farming mechanism.
If you want to stop it, you have to break the machine. You have to destroy the Pillar of Scales.
"The Pillar of Scales," Ren noted.
That was the massive magical scoreboard in the center of the Academy courtyard. It displayed the rankings of every student.
"It's a collection device," Ren realized. "It absorbs the emotional energy of Envy from the students staring at it."
Ren stood up.
He couldn't destroy the Pillar yet. He was too weak. Malthus was guarding it.
"I need to get stronger," Ren said. "And I need to save Caelum."
Caelum was in Solaris House. The epicenter of the Envy farm.
There was a knock on the door.
Ren froze. He drew his Shiv.
"Ren?" It was Kaelith's voice. "Open up. It's urgent."
Ren opened the door.
Kaelith stood there, looking pale. Beside her was Bastion (the Golem).
"What is it?" Ren asked.
"It's Caelum," Kaelith said. "He... he challenged Draven to a Duel."
Ren frowned. "A duel? Caelum isn't stupid. He knows he can't beat Draven one-on-one."
"That's the problem," Bastion rumbled. "It's a Death Duel. Sanctioned by the faculty. To be held in the Arena tomorrow at noon."
"Why?" Ren demanded. "Why would he agree to that?"
"Draven taunted him," Kaelith said. "About his father. About you. He said the Arkens are cowards hiding behind a Null servant. Caelum snapped. His eyes... they were glowing green, Ren. Like the mist."
Ren punched the doorframe. Splinters flew.
"Envy," Ren hissed. "The infection is forcing him to act irrationally. It wants him to fight so it can feed on the conflict."
If Caelum fought Draven tomorrow, he would die. Draven was Level 18 with high-tier Fire Magic. Caelum was Level 15 with basic Wind Magic and a compromised mind.
"We have to stop it," Kaelith said.
"We can't," Bastion shook his head. "A Sanctioned Duel is sacred law. If Caelum backs out, he is expelled and House Arken is disgraced. If we interfere, we are executed."
Ren walked to the window. He looked at the Ivory Tower glowing in the night.
"He can't back out," Ren said. "And we can't intervene."
Ren turned around. His expression was cold.
"So we cheat."
"Cheat?" Kaelith raised an eyebrow. "In front of the whole school?"
"Not during the duel," Ren said. "Before it."
Ren looked at his burn-scarred hand.
"Draven relies on fire. He relies on rage. But he has a weakness."
"What weakness?"
"He's arrogant," Ren said. "And he sleeps in Solaris House."
Ren grabbed his cloak.
"Bastion, can you tunnel through stone?"
The Golem nodded. "I am Earth."
"Good. Kaelith, I need your paralysis arrows."
"Where are we going?"
"We're going to break into the Solaris Dorm," Ren said. "We're going to give Draven a nightmare he won't wake up from."
Location: Solaris House (The Golden Spire).
Time: 2:00 AM.
Solaris House was a fortress. Wards covered every window. Guards patrolled the halls.
But it had a foundation.
Deep underground, Bastion pressed his massive hands against the earth.
[ Skill: Earth Meld. ]
The stone wall of the foundation softened like clay. He pushed, creating a tunnel just big enough for a person.
"I can hold this for ten minutes," Bastion grunted, sweat (mud?) beading on his forehead.
"Ten minutes is plenty," Ren said.
He and Kaelith slipped into the basement of Solaris House.
They crept up the service stairs.
Ren checked the room numbers. Room 303: Draven Thorne.
They reached the door. It was locked with a magic seal.
Ren placed his hand on it. [Mana Drain].
He sipped the mana from the lock until it clicked open silently.
They slipped inside.
Draven was asleep in a massive four-poster bed. He snored softly. On his nightstand sat his wand and a stack of letters.
Ren signaled Kaelith.
Kaelith crept to the wardrobe. She opened a vial of Sweat of the Sloth. She dabbed it onto the inside of Draven's duel robes hanging there.
Effect: When he sweats tomorrow, the gas will activate, draining his stamina.
Ren moved to the nightstand.
He picked up Draven's wand.
[ Item: Wand of the Phoenix (Rank C) ]
[ Effect: Amplifies Fire Magic by 20%. ]
Ren pulled out his alchemy kit. He took a tiny brush and painted a rune on the handle using Invisible Ink made from Mana-Void Beetles (found in the library basement).
[ Rune: Dampener. ]
[ Effect: Reduces Mana Conductivity by 50%. ]
He put the wand back.
Then, Ren did one last thing.
He placed his hand on Draven's forehead.
Draven stirred.
Ren leaned close. He activated [Void Presence].
He whispered directly into Draven's subconscious.
"The fire will fail you. The cold is coming."
Ren pulled back.
Draven shivered in his sleep, a nightmare taking hold.
"Let's go," Ren whispered.
They slipped out, leaving no trace but a cursed wand and a poisoned robe.
Location: The Arena.
Time: Noon. The Duel.
The stands were packed. Everyone wanted to see blood.
Caelum stood in the arena. He looked terrible. His eyes were bloodshot, his hands shaking. The Envy infection was peaking.
Draven walked out. He looked confident, wearing his pristine dueling robes. He waved to the crowd.
"Prepare to die, Arken!" Draven shouted, raising his wand.
High above, Headmaster Solon watched. Next to him stood Cardinal Malthus.
"The Arken boy is ripe," Malthus whispered. "His Envy is delicious. When he dies, the burst of emotion will feed the Eye for a week."
"Begin!" The referee shouted.
Draven smirked. "Inferno Blast!"
He channeled a massive amount of mana into his wand. He expected a roaring torrent of fire.
But the Dampener Rune activated.
Instead of a torrent, the wand sputtered. A pathetic puff of smoke coughed out.
"What?" Draven blinked. "Misfire?"
Caelum, seeing the opening, didn't hesitate. Even in his frenzied state, his training kicked in.
"Wind Blade!"
Caelum slashed his rapier. A blade of compressed air shot across the arena.
Draven tried to dodge. But as he moved, his body heated up. The Sweat of the Sloth on his robes vaporized.
His legs felt like lead. He moved in slow motion.
SLASH.
The Wind Blade cut across Draven's chest. Not deep enough to kill, but deep enough to bleed.
"AHHH!" Draven screamed. "My magic! Why isn't it working?!"
He tried again. "Fireball!"
A small, weak fireball fizzled out of the wand.
Caelum laughed. It was a manic, broken laugh.
"Is that it?" Caelum walked forward. "Is that the power of the Empire?"
Caelum raised his sword for the finishing blow.
Up in the stands, Ren watched closely.
Now comes the hard part, Ren thought. Caelum is going to kill him. If he kills him, he becomes a murderer, and the Envy consumes him fully.
Ren closed his eyes. [The Index].
[ Source: 'Ventriloquism' ]
Ren threw his voice, making it sound like it came from right beside Caelum's ear.
"A true Lord shows mercy. A butcher shows fear."
Caelum froze. The sword hovered inches from Draven's neck.
The green light in Caelum's eyes flickered. He fought the urge.
"I..." Caelum gasped.
He lowered the sword.
He kicked Draven in the face.
Thud.
Draven was knocked unconscious.
"I win," Caelum declared, turning his back on his enemy.
The crowd went wild.
Up in the box, Malthus frowned.
"Disappointing," the Cardinal muttered. "The harvest was... incomplete."
Ren exhaled.
He had rigged the game. He had saved Caelum's soul.
But as he looked at Malthus, he saw the Cardinal turn his gaze toward the Umbra section. Toward Ren.
Malthus knew.
[ System Alert ]
[ Quest Updated: Survive the Academy. ]
[ New Objective: Locate the Entrance to the 'Hidden Continent of Envy'. ]
[ Warning: The Inquisition is mobilizing. ]
Ren stood up.
"Round Two goes to us," Ren whispered. "But the boss fight is coming."
End of Chapter 17
Summary:
The Escape: Ren survives Malthus by breaking the mana tanks (causing chaos) and deflecting a spell using a Mirror Shield technique from the Index.
The Intel: Ren learns that the "Eye of Envy" feeds on student competition and that the Church is complicit.
The Duel: Draven challenges Caelum to a Death Duel. Caelum is infected by Envy-rage.
The Sabotage: Ren, Kaelith, and Bastion break into Solaris House. They poison Draven's clothes (Fatigue) and curse his wand (Mana Dampener).
The Outcome: Draven's magic fails. Caelum wins but almost kills Draven. Ren uses Ventriloquism to snap Caelum out of the rage, sparing Draven and denying Malthus the "Harvest."