The morning sun did not shine brightly in Eldoria. The sky was covered by thick, gloomy gray clouds. The air felt incredibly cold and smelled like burnt, rusty metal.The main courtyard of Ignis Academy had now transformed into a silent slaughterhouse. The wave of white fire from Headmaster Alaric's suicide magic last night was so hot that it melted the stone floor into an expanse of sharp, black obsidian glass. The remaining ashes of hundreds of Iron Assassins scattered in the morning wind, mixing with the debris of the dorm buildings that were still emitting gray smoke.General Valerius and the rest of his troops had retreated before dawn broke. They realized that this area was completely destroyed, and there was no point in throwing away more soldiers' lives to search for Arthur's body in the middle of that artificial sea of lava. They left the academy to die on its own.In the midst of that suffocating silence, Arthur sat cross-legged on the cold, rocky ground.He had not moved a

Hot steam smelling of sulfur and rusted iron blasted from giant pipes along the tunnels of Khaz Grom. Arthur stood at the end of the slowly creaking suspension bridge. His hand still tightly gripped the hilt of Finn's short sword. In front of him, dozens of homemade rifle barrels were aimed right at his face and chest.In the middle of the armed dwarf encirclement, the mafia boss sat casually on an iron chair that resembled a throne. The old dwarf had a bulging belly wrapped in a luxurious leather vest. His right arm from the elbow down was completely replaced by a mechanical prosthesis made of pure gold and a complex arrangement of gears."Talk business, wtf," Arthur replied to the greeting without beating around the bush. His eyes glared sharply at the dwarf boss. "You welcome us with dozens of gun muzzles. Is this how your cartel offers hot tea to guests."The old dwarf laughed out loud. His laugh was raspy and echoed loudly, making his fat belly jiggle. He raised his golden hand,

The long blast of a brass horn signaled the start of the fight.The cheers of thousands of spectators from the upper stands buzzed so loudly that it vibrated the air. They threw gold coins, leftover chunks of meat, and empty beer mugs into the arena. They all came to see human blood spill and soak this red sand.Across the arena, Sangalgo the Black Butcher growled softly. His growl sounded like massive boulders grinding against each other. The ten-foot-tall mutant monster lifted his giant steel hammer with one hand, as if the hundred-pound object was made of cotton. The single red eye behind his iron mask glared at Arthur with a savage hunger."Little meat," Sangalgo's voice trembled with a raspy tone. His human language sounded incredibly broken and smelled of acid. "I crush your bones. I chew your head."Arthur was not intimidated in the slightest. The predator mode in his brain suppressed all fear and panic down to zero. His heartbeat was steady. He twirled the rusty meat cleaver i

The dozens of mutant earth dragons did not wait for a second invitation. Three giant monsters from the front line leaped forward at the same time. Their mouths opened wide, showing off thousands of sharp fangs dripping with deadly acid.Arthur did not take a step back. His injured leg did not even shift a single centimeter from its position. Instead of dodging, Arthur threw himself forward, sliding across the obsidian stone floor. He reached out his right hand and immediately grabbed the Shard of Dawn hovering above the crater.Right as his skin touched the sacred crystal, a massive explosion of energy occurred.A golden shockwave swept across the entire area of Sector Zero. The three earth dragons suspended in the air were instantly thrown backward and smashed into stone pillars, shattering them to pieces.Inside Arthur's head, it felt like a volcano was erupting. An absurd burning sensation spread from his palm, scorching every blood vessel in his arm, and traveling up toward his he

The iron elevator cage shot upward at a speed that tore at their sanity. The sound of grinding rusty gears was deafening. Arthur, Lyra, Kaelen, Bramble, and Grimwald were thrown to the iron floor, piled on top of each other, enduring the gravitational pressure that felt like it wanted to force their guts out.Below them, the rumbling sound of Sector Zero's collapse sounded like the world was ending.Bam.The elevator stopped abruptly with a brutal crash at the end of the rail. The impact sent them all flying into the ceiling of the iron cage before falling back to the floor. The barred doors opened automatically, releasing hot steam that smelled of gunpowder.They had arrived at the surface of the mountain, right at the emergency exit of the Khaz Grom mine that faced directly into a thickly fogged valley.Arthur rolled out of the elevator and fell face down on the muddy ground. He coughed violently. Blood mixed with volcanic ash spilled from his mouth. His right hand, which he had jus