2025-06-16 08:27:07Chapter 11: The Dual Path**
The eastern training yard was bathed in the pale light of dawn as Ethan endured Professor Dain's relentless assault. His muscles burned, his breath came in ragged gasps, and his hands trembled around the wooden practice sword. **CLACK!** Another brutal strike reverberated through Ethan's arms, nearly knocking the weapon from his grip. "Again!" Dain barked, his scarred face unreadable. "A mage who picks up a blade should at least learn how to hold it properly." Ethan gritted his teeth, adjusting his stance. The System's warnings pulsed in his vision: **[Muscle Fatigue: 78%]** **[Bone Stress: 45%]** **[Vessel Stability: 61%]** He couldn't afford to stop. --- ### **The Impossible Breakthrough** Dain lunged again, his wooden sword a blur. Ethan barely managed to deflect it, but the force sent him stumbling back. His arms felt like lead, his legs shook— And then, something **shifted**. A surge of energy, different from magic, erupted from deep within his body. His muscles tightened, his stance steadied, and for the first time, he **moved** without hesitation. His counterstrike was clean. Precise. **THWACK!** The wooden blade struck Dain's ribs with enough force to make the hardened combat instructor **grunt**. Silence. Dain took a slow step back, his eyes widening. "You—" Ethan's body hummed with newfound strength. The System's message flared brightly: **[KNIGHT BREAKTHROUGH ACHIEVED]** **[New Level: Squire Level 1]** **[Physical Reinforcement: +20%]** **[Vessel Stability: 66% (+5%)]** Dain stared at him, his usual gruff demeanor shattered. "Impossible." His voice was barely above a whisper. "You're a **mage**." Ethan exhaled, rolling his shoulders. The exhaustion was still there, but his body felt… different. Stronger. Dain's expression darkened. "Do you have any idea how rare it is to cultivate **both** paths?" Ethan met his gaze. "I do now." The professor's grip tightened on his practice sword. "This changes things." --- After the grueling session, Ethan limped to the library, his body aching but his mind sharp. The System guided him to a basic knight manual—*"Iron Body Scripture"*—but as he pulled it from the shelf, a slip of parchment fell out. A single line was written in elegant script: *"The body remembers what the mind forgets."* Ethan frowned. He hadn't sensed anyone watching him. Who left this? --- At supper, whispers followed him. Lirien Veyne sat at the far end of the dining hall, her silver eyes locked onto him. When their gazes met, she smirked and raised her goblet in a silent toast. Dorian, his nose still swollen from their last encounter, looked ready to charge at him—but Lirien's hand on his wrist kept him in place. Ethan ate in silence, ignoring them. --- The dining hall buzzed with the usual evening chatter when Professor Kaelthorne appeared at Ethan's table. The silver-haired mage didn't sit—he simply stood there, his violet eyes boring into Ethan with unsettling intensity. "Gale. The Headmaster wants to see you." Silence rippled outward from their table. Students stopped mid-bite, their whispers dying instantly. Ethan set down his fork. "Now?" Kaelthorne's expression didn't change. "Immediately." --- ### **The Walk to Judgment** The corridors of Moonlight Academy felt longer than usual. Torches flickered in their sconces, casting shifting shadows across the stone walls as Ethan followed Kaelthorne toward the central spire. *"System. Analysis."* **[Probability of Disciplinary Action: 78%]** **[Primary Concern: Unauthorized Spell Usage During Duel]** **[Recommended Approach: Caution]** Ethan exhaled through his nose. He had known this was coming. The grand oak doors of the Headmaster's office loomed ahead, carved with scenes of ancient magical battles. Kaelthorne knocked once, then stepped aside. "Enter." The voice from within was calm. Cold. Ethan pushed the door open. --- ### **The Headmaster's Office** Headmaster Aldric sat behind a massive obsidian desk, his fingers steepled. The room smelled of aged parchment and the faint ozone tang of powerful wards. Moonlight streamed through stained-glass windows, painting the floor in fractured colors. "You broke the rules, Apprentice Gale." No greeting. No pretense. Ethan met his gaze. "Which ones?" Aldric's eyes narrowed. A log crackled in the fireplace. "Do not play coy. You were explicitly instructed not to cast spells without supervision." The Headmaster leaned forward. "Yet you used **Gravity's Grasp** in a public duel." Ethan didn't flinch. "You told me not to cast spells unsupervised. That duel was witnessed by two professors and half the student body." A muscle twitched in Aldric's jaw. "Semantics." "Practicality," Ethan countered. "If I'm not allowed to use magic, how exactly am I supposed to defend myself?" The temperature in the room dropped. --- ### **The Silence That Followed** The Headmaster studied him for a long moment. Then, slowly, he reached into his desk and withdrew a familiar book—**"The Alchemist's Crucible."** This is an Alchemist book he took from the library to study. Ethan's fingers twitched. He hadn't realized it was missing from his room two days ago "Interesting reading material," Aldric mused, flipping through the pages. "For someone who claims to need magic for survival, you're branching out." Ethan said nothing. The book snapped shut. "You will submit to a mana restriction seal for one month." "No." The word hung between them, heavier than any spell. Aldric's voice turned dangerous. "Excuse me?" Ethan kept his tone level. "If you seal my magic, you leave me defenseless. That violates academy protection statutes—Section Twelve, Subsection Three, if I recall correctly." A beat of silence. Then— The Headmaster laughed. It wasn't a pleasant sound. "Clever boy." He set the book aside. "Very well. No seal. But if I hear of **one more** unauthorized spell..." His smile vanished. "You'll wish I'd expelled you instead." Ethan nodded once. "Understood."
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Chapter 23: The Iron Fist Ape
Ethan stood calmly in the middle of the grassy plains, his cloak fluttering gently behind him. Before him, ten hulking Pig Demons snorted and snarled, their thick, bloated bodies covered in cracked gray skin. Red eyes burned with hatred as they locked onto Ethan.With a guttural roar, the entire group charged.Ethan didn’t flinch.He raised a single hand, voice steady and clear.“Sky Domain.”A powerful pressure exploded outward from his body like a tidal wave. The force slammed into the charging Pig Demons with brutal efficiency, flattening them to the ground before they could even raise a claw. Dirt cracked beneath their bodies, and several groaned in pain, struggling to rise.Their roars now carried something new—fear.Ethan’s expression didn’t change.“Holy Light Sword… fall.”The sky above shimmered. Dozens of radiant swords forged from pure light appeared high overhead. With a sharp whistle, they fell like divine spears.Shunk! Shunk! Shunk!The blades pierced the demons cleanly
Chapter 22: The Four Pillars of Judgment
Ethan walked slowly to the corpse of the Alpha Shadow Wolf, his boots rustling the tall grass. Kneeling beside it, he studied the beast’s body with a calm, focused gaze. Its black fur was coarse and thick, perfect for blending into the night. The claws were long and deadly, and the creature’s green eyes had dulled in death.After a moment, he stood up and looked around at the fifteen lifeless wolves scattered across the field.Reaching into his coat, he pulled out a small bag—roughly the size of an egg.“A storage bag,” he muttered to himself. “I really need to get a storage ring. This thing’s too small, and it can’t even hold much.”The storage bag, a low-grade magical artifact, could only contain non-living matter and had limited space. Still, it would have to do for now.With a flick of his wrist, a glowing light sword formed in Ethan’s hand. One by one, he cut off the heads of the Shadow Wolves and stored them in the bag—proof of his completed mission.Once the grim task was finis
Chapter 21: Shadow Wolves Hunt
High in the sky, Ethan suddenly came to a stop, hovering silently. His sharp eyes scanned the vast stretch below.Beneath him lay an expansive grassland—wild and untamed. The grass here wasn’t ordinary. It rose as high as small trees, swaying gently in the breeze like green waves.And hiding within that sea of grass… were wolves.They were pitch black from head to tail, with gleaming emerald eyes that cut through the shadows. Their teeth were jagged, their claws like blades. From above, Ethan counted at least fifteen of them sprawled lazily, completely unaware of his presence.But one stood out.In the center of the pack rested a massive beast, easily twice the size of the others. Its muscles bulged, its fur darker than night, and a faint aura of dominance radiated from it.> That must be the Alpha.Suddenly, a glowing red rectangle appeared above each of their heads—translucent panels flickering like holograms.> “Huh? What’s this? Another function of the system?” Ethan muttered.He
Chapter 20: The Sky Above, the Shadows Below
Sophia stood frozen, her eyes fixed on the rapidly shrinking silhouette soaring through the sky.Ethan’s figure streaked across the horizon like a comet, leaving behind a faint shockwave in the air.> That speed… and he’s flying freely…Her brows furrowed in disbelief.> To fly without a mount, one must be at least a High Knight or an Archmage… But he’s far too young. There's no way...She shook her head, trying to make sense of what she’d just witnessed.> He must have used a spell. There’s no way a real Archmage would be this young. Not in the entire empire.In the Veylan Empire, Archmages were treated as national treasures—beings of immense power and reverence. None were under the age of forty. For someone Ethan’s age to have reached that level?Impossible.Sophia exhaled slowly, masking her unease, then turned to her party.“Let’s move. We’re already behind schedule.”---High Above the GroundEthan shot across the sky like a falcon unleashed, the wind rushing past his ears as he
Chapter 19: Shocking Sophia and her Group
Ethan walked steadily toward the East Gate of the city.There were four main gates in total—North, South, East, and West—and each served as a vital artery for the city's trade, travelers, and adventurers. The East Gate, closest to the nearby forests and wilderness, was especially busy.As Ethan approached, he found the area swarming with people. Merchants hauling carts, farmers delivering goods, adventurers departing on missions, and travelers streaming in and out. Guards stood on both sides of the gate, keeping order and checking documents.Just as Ethan reached the gate, one of the guards stepped forward.> “Kid, where are you going?” the guard asked, blocking his path.Ethan calmly reached into his pocket and pulled out the mission slip he had accepted from the Adventurer’s Guild, displaying the guild’s insignia.> “Sir, I’m heading out for a mission,” he said politely.The guard glanced at the paper and then at Ethan. Seeing the official seal and Ethan’s respectful demeanor, the m
Chapter 18: A Mission of Their Own
Back in the Adventurer’s Guild hall, silence lingered for a moment after Ethan’s departure. Loe, the red-haired boy, kept staring at the door for a beat longer before scoffing. > “Tch… Who does that guy think he is?” Zade, the black-haired youth leaning casually against the wall, chuckled without looking up. > “The guy who beat you up with one spell.” Loe’s face instantly turned bright red. > “Zade, I dare you to say that again!” > “What are you going to do? Cry to your brother?” Zade shot back, smirking. > “Y-You… How dare you!” Loe’s hand went to his hilt, drawing half his sword from its sheath as his eyes turned sharp and dangerous. But before things escalated further, a cold voice cut through the tension like ice. > “Enough. Both of you.” Sophia’s voice was calm, but the authority behind it made both boys freeze. She stepped toward the mission board without another word. Both Loe and Zade instinctively backed down, their earlier fire snuffed out like candles in the wi
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