Akara was genuinely startled when he removed the girl’s mask. Behind the wolf mask was a beautiful face. A wave of nostalgia washed over him—just like the moment he had once removed Lisa’s mask, the girl who trained him during his childhood.The masked girl’s name was Sania. When her mask was taken off, her face twisted with both pain and irritation, tears streaming down her cheeks. Akara was momentarily stunned, then quickly regained his senses and held out the three pills he had prepared.“Take them.”Sania snatched them as if seizing prey, then swallowed all three while turning her face away. Akara immediately began channeling his energy, helping heal Sania’s leg, which was now covered in burn marks.“Kid! We’re truly in danger if the forest guardians show up!” the Drake shouted, causing Sania to rise instantly into a battle-ready stance.“That one,” Akara said calmly, pointing at the Drake. Sania approached it out of curiosity.“What’s your name?” Akara asked.“Sania,” she replied

“What’s wrong!?” Sania shouted when Akara suddenly changed direction.“Someone’s in danger!” He immediately unleashed his realm aura and shot forward at even greater speed. Soon, an orange glow came into view—the Mystic aura of a banyan tree. An aura so oppressive that even Komo shuddered in fear. There were four concentric layers within that Mystic aura.The blonde-haired woman stood calmly, even though countless creeping roots writhed before her. At the center of those roots bloomed a red flower, its stem rising directly from the ground—a Blood Spider Lily, a flower with long, finger-like petals. In Japanese, it was called Higanbana, a flower that symbolized death.“Watch out!” Akara lunged forward and scooped the woman into his arms just as the hanging roots of the magical tree nearly struck her.“Damn human!” the banyan tree cursed. Akara and the others immediately fled, leaving behind the fully Mystic-level banyan tree—just one step away from reaching the Dragon rank.“Are you al

Sania then launched a kick toward the man’s neck, while Akara gripped his arm with both hands. The kick was powerful enough to create a violent gust of wind, yet the man did not budge in the slightest. Panic flashed across Sania’s face—but at that moment, Akara released his realm aura and focused his mutated flames into his hands.“Heavenly Flame!?” The man was visibly shocked and immediately swung his arm, trying to fling Akara away. However, he failed—the grip of Akara’s hands was far stronger than he expected. Flames began to scorch his arm, and panic finally set in.Seizing the opening, Sania hooked both of her legs around the man’s arm, forcing him to release his choke. She flipped behind him, locked one of his arms, and pressed a dagger against his throat.“Let go,” Sania said softly—but her voice was filled with lethal intent.With no choice, the man released his grip. Akara immediately collapsed into coughing, gasping desperately for air. The sleeve of the man’s robe was now b

The massive crystal streaked forward at terrifying speed, tearing through the writhing roots and nearly striking the three Amerta Academy students.“What was that!?”“A crystal!?”They froze in shock, their attention fully drawn to the colossal projectile—until their eyes widened as they saw two figures burst free from the collapsing dome of roots.…Moments earlier, after launching the crystal, Komo had shrunk back down. The opening was far too small for his full form. Even so, escaping with Akara’s speed alone was impossible—despite Akara already releasing his realm aura and reinforcing his body with Heavenly Flame.Just as despair set in, a girl with a high ponytail shot upward from below. She seized Akara’s hand, pulling him along as they escaped at the very last second. She had been following him from the very beginning, hiding flawlessly among the trees, her presence completely concealed.The hostile gazes the academy students had aimed at Akara instantly shifted when they saw S

The two students, including Leda Kentos, were left utterly stunned, unable to utter a single word. In the next instant, Heavenly Flames spread outward, devouring every root in their path.Even roots that were not directly struck were torn apart—the shockwave from the explosion alone surged like a violent gale, sweeping everything away.“What the hell was that!?” Komo shouted, staring at Akara in horror.“So it was you back then?” Sania murmured, recalling the identical explosion that had followed the battle between Lina and Prince Bram Bidara. The same devastating blast that had once burned an entire forest—though back then, the flames had been purely blue.As nearly all the roots were reduced to ash, a massive crater was revealed—the aftermath of the Higanbana explosion. The hole descended deep underground, and from within it glowed an orange light—the aura of the domain’s owner.“Damn humans!”“There it is!” Leda Kentos shot forward, followed closely by the one remaining student who