CHAPTER 329: THERE IS NO EXCUSE

The sound of a growl echoed through the crimson peaks at the far end of the Academy’s training mountains.

Danny stood there shirtless with his muscular body drenched in sweat as his chest rose and fell like a raging furnace.

He had been training since dawn. Now, long after dusk had fallen, he was still going at it with his Berserker class’s mana flaring crimson around him.

His companions had all gone to rest. The night winds cut against his bare skin, but he paid it no mind.

Two massive boulders, each the size of a wagon, rested before him. With a roar that sent tremors across the mountain ridge, Danny stooped low and hurled both onto his back. His muscles bulged as veins crawled like furious serpents across his arms and neck.

"Raaaagh!"

With a mighty heave, he charged forward, dragging and lifting the stones up the steep incline until he reached the summit. Every step cracked the ground beneath him, every breath sounded like a war cry.

When he reached the peak, he hurled both boulders into the sky and then slammed his fist into the first one midair.

Boom!

The explosion sent shards scattering like shooting stars. He struck the second before it landed, pulverizing it completely.

Dust and shards rained down as he stood there with his chest heaving.

"I can’t stop..." His voice was hoarse, but the determination in it could shatter mountains. "I need to get stronger... I need to get better..."

He stood there in the silence with the stars glinting in his sweat.

Images of Victor flashed in his mind...

Danny clenched his fists until blood dripped between his knuckles.

"It’s been a month already..." he muttered. "He has to be out there... somewhere..."

He punched the ground, and the earth cracked beneath him.

"If the Mana Defense Corps can’t find him..." He raised his head and fiery determination blazed in his eyes. "Then I’ll do it myself."

He turned toward the horizon, watching the Academy structures in the distance.

"Wait for me, brother," he muttered. "Next time we meet, I’ll be strong enough to protect you."

And then, he resumed his training. The sound of his roars echoed through the night like the cry of a wounded beast refusing to die.

---

Meanwhile, in another location within the academy, Elyra Vorn bald head gleamed faintly under the artificial moon as her emerald-green skin glistened with sweat and blood.

The remains of a colossal mountain of coral and stone stood before her, split cleanly in half. The body of water around her was littered with fragments.

She exhaled slowly, gripping her saber tighter. Blood dripped from the hilt where her palms had been cut by her own intensity.

A system notification with glowing blue scripts appeared before her eyes.

[ Skill Activated: Rendering Series — Thousand Splitting Cuts ]

A low vibration spread through the surroundings and the mountain before her trembled again before splitting further, into countless small cubes that created a massive heap.

In the next moment, it shattered completely, scattering into a storm of coral dust that swirled around her like crimson snow.

Elyra lowered her saber while breathing steadily.

"If only I was stronger..." she whispered. "I could have saved him..."

Her mind replayed the moment Victor was pulled back out of the circle.

Her heart clenched at the memory. She had wanted to surpass him, to defeat him, to prove herself since she lost at the Weapons Legacy Competition.

Now, all she wanted was one more duel... one more chance to stand beside him.

She looked at her saber and clenched her fist.

"I’ll keep training," she said softly. "Until even the gods can’t take someone I care about from me."

The shattered coral dust drifted around her like glowing fireflies, and she stood there in the middle of it all.

---

The dormitory section reserved for S-ranked students was luxurious, spacious, and silent as usual.

Within a particularly empty room, Selene lay curled on a large king-sized bed, hugging a pillow to her chest.

This was Victor’s room...

His scent still lingered faintly on the sheets with a mix of cold air.

She buried her face deeper into the pillow while taking small whiffs.

Her mind replayed his teasing remarks, his smirk, his ridiculous comments that somehow always managed to make her laugh.

Her fingers clenched tighter around the sheets.

"Idiot..." she whispered softly as her voice broke.

"Still waiting for all this to be some kind of long nightmare..." she muttered emotionally.

Then, her eyelids twitched in suspicion as she spun around.

In an instant, she rolled off the bed, grabbed a dagger from her boot, and hurled it toward the doorway.

A metallic clink rang out as the dagger was caught midair with two fingers pinching it effortlessly.

"Whoa there, tiger," a calm voice said.

Selene’s eyes flicked up, meeting Aria’s. The warrior stood at the door, dressed in white combat gear with her long hair tied back.

Her expression was unreadable, but her tone carried amusement.

"I get that you miss him," Aria voiced while flipping the dagger once before handing it back, "but this is kinda creepy."

Selene’s cheeks flushed crimson. "Shut up," she muttered before snatching the dagger from her hand. "What are you even doing here?"

Aria shrugged. "Same as you."

Selene raised a brow. "What, sniffing his sheets?"

Aria smirked. "No. Making sure his room’s safe." She walked closer. "And maybe... remembering that idiot too."

Selene sighed before sitting back on the bed. "You miss him too, huh?"

"Don’t get me wrong," Aria said coolly, leaning against the wall. "He was annoying. Reckless. Always smiling even when things went to hell..."

She paused. "But yeah. He grew on me."

Silence fell between them for a moment.

Selene looked at the ceiling. "Do you think he’s still alive?"

Aria’s silver eyes flickered. "He’s Victor." She smirked faintly. "If anyone can punch death in the face and walk away, it’s him."

Selene chuckled quietly. "You sound just like him."

"Don’t tell anyone," Aria stated with a smile and then suddenly frowned.

"Danny, Reed and the others have been training like crazy since the incident..."

Selene eyes lowered; "They’re not the only ones..."

Her fingers had marks and calluses all over them. She proceeded to grab her gloves by the side and wore them over her fingers.

"We have to be ready... if they’re not going to find him, we have to be strong enough to go after him ourselves. I will never give up," Selene stated with a fierce tone.

Aria eyes twinkled briefly in surprise before switching to a look of understanding; "As expected of the crazy assassin."

A smile appeared on Aria’s face once more. "Well, I’ll refrain from talking you guys out of intense training. If those bastards could pull something like that off at sector K-22, then we better be powerful enough to face any unexpected surprises in the future..."

...

...

It had been a month since the heavens split open and a massive runic circle glowed across the sky like an omen in the K-22 Sector.

Though time had begun smoothing the edges of that catastrophe, its shadow still lingered in the hearts of every student and instructor alike.

At the top floor of the Administrative Tower, inside a quiet office lined with floating crystals and stacks of documents, Instructor Vex Rhane stood before a tall woman seated behind a crescent-shaped desk.

The Vice Chancellor, draped in the academy’s silver and blue robes, glanced through a translucent screen. Her weary yet piercing eyes scanned the data before her.

"Camp Eleven progress report," Vex Rhane stated while placing a crystal tablet on the desk. "Updated performance metrics, training evaluations, and the psychological adjustment summaries of the students for the past month."

The Vice Chancellor tapped the crystal. "I’ve been reading through it. Their combat performance has improved significantly — a thirty-two percent increase in skill synchronization and a twenty-five percent increase in mana adaptation. That’s... unexpected."

A small, knowing smile curved Vex Rhane’s lips. "It’s all thanks to him."

The Vice Chancellor paused while glancing up. "Victor."

Vex nodded. "Even in his absence, he still manages to affect them. The incident... it scared them, yes, but it also inspired them. They saw him — someone their age, someone they trained beside — stand before something unimaginable and fight."

The Vice Chancellor leaned back with her hands folded. "If only the academy hadn’t failed him first." Her voice softened, tinged with regret. "We should have had proper protective protocols in place before sending the students there. No excursion involving an undomed sector should have gone through without mandatory addition of multiple protective protocols. Regardless of the unexpected stunt pulled by the Drakenars, there is no excuse."

"You’re not wrong," Vex said quietly. "But don’t shoulder the entire burden, Vice Chancellor. We all failed him — you, me, the mission board, even the tactical monitors. The academy learned a hard lesson that day."

Silence filled the room for a moment. Outside, a breeze carried the faint chants of students practicing spells in the main training field.

Vex broke the silence. "At least now we’ve done what should’ve been done long ago — the Teleportation Bullpen protocols."