THE MAN WITH THE SSS RANK ABILITIES

Chapter 9: The Storm Begins

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[ The Academy’s High Council Meets ]

The air inside the Grand Chamber was thick with tension, so dense it seemed almost tangible, clinging to the skin like mist before a storm. Towering pillars lined the circular room, each etched with ancient symbols that pulsed faintly with a deep, crimson light. Shadows danced along the walls, thrown by the flickering flames of torches mounted high above.

At the center of it all stood the academy’s highest-ranking instructors and elders, seated in grim, heavy silence around a long, polished obsidian table that reflected their strained expressions like a dark, distorted mirror. Not one dared to speak out of turn.

At the head of the table sat the Headmaster—a towering man with sharp, hawk-like features and an aura so overwhelming it seemed to warp the very air around him. His SS-rank ability made even the strongest warriors in the room feel like children standing before a storm. His gloved fingers tapped rhythmically against the cold surface of the table, a steady beat that echoed through the chamber like a war drum. His expression was carved from stone—cold, unreadable, unreadable.

Across from him, a Grandmaster, an elder with a mane of silver hair and deep lines etched into his weathered face, finally broke the silence, his voice little more than a whisper, yet somehow cutting through the thick tension like a blade.

"Leo Carter," he murmured, his tone heavy with something between awe and dread. "An anomaly."

Instantly, the silence shattered into a flurry of low, urgent whispers.

"He was an F-rank," one of the older instructors said, his voice trembling with disbelief and a hint of fear. "The weakest of the weak. A gutter rat among lions. And now? Now he stands above even our best warriors. This isn't just an awakening. It's... unnatural."

Murmurs of agreement and fear echoed around the table, eyes darting toward the Headmaster for guidance, for reassurance—but finding none.

The Headmaster let out a slow, measured breath, the sound somehow louder than any shout. His gaze swept over the council, pinning each member to their seat.

"Unnatural, perhaps," he said, his deep voice resonating with a finality that brooked no argument. "But undeniable. The academy follows only one law: Power."

He leaned forward slightly, the obsidian table groaning under his weight, his next words dropping into the stunned silence like stones into a still pond.

"If he has the strength to rise, then let him. If he cannot hold onto that power," a pause, deliberate and cold, "others will take his place."

The message was clear—and chilling.

A heavy, oppressive silence fell once more, thicker and heavier than before. Every elder understood what those words meant.

Leo Carter, once a forgotten weakling, was now a marked man.

The training hall lay in ruins, its shattered walls groaning under the weight of broken stone and twisted metal beams. Dust hung heavily in the air, filtering the pale afternoon light into hazy shafts. Amidst the destruction, Ethan stood motionless, his A-rank aura crackling around him like a caged storm barely held in check.

He stared at the very spot where he had once left Leo for dead—bloodied, broken, and humiliated.

Now, only a jagged crater remained.

Ethan’s fists trembled at his sides, clenched so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, drawing thin streams of blood that dripped unnoticed to the ground. Rage surged through him, hot and blinding, but beneath that burning anger lurked something far worse.

Fear.

Leo was stronger now. Far, far stronger.

"Bastard," Ethan spat, the word tasting sour in his mouth. His entire life, he had stood unchallenged at the top, crushing those beneath him like insects without a second thought. But now? The one person he had mocked, bullied, and discarded like trash had surpassed him with terrifying ease.

Beside him, Sophia stood with her arms crossed, her face an unreadable mask. Her golden hair fluttered slightly in the broken wind that blew through the shattered walls.

"He’s changed," she murmured, her voice almost too soft to hear.

Together, they watched as Leo walked calmly through the courtyard, every step he took sending ripples of awe—and fear—through the onlookers. His posture was relaxed, almost lazy, yet his presence was suffocating, a gravitational force that bent the very atmosphere around him.

Ethan scoffed bitterly. "What, do you regret it now? Afraid you threw away the wrong guy?"

Sophia stiffened at his words, her arms tightening around herself. "Don’t be ridiculous," she snapped back, but her voice lacked conviction. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. Couldn't.

Because deep down, buried under layers of pride and denial, a terrible seed of doubt had taken root.

And then—Leo walked past them.

He didn’t stop.

Didn’t slow down.

Didn’t even spare them a glance.

To him, they were nothing more than dust on the road.

And the worst part?

He was smiling.

A small, almost serene smile that struck them harder than any blow.

Leo had never enjoyed the spotlight. He had spent most of his life blending into the background, keeping his head down, avoiding attention like a wounded animal hiding from predators.

But now?

He owned it.

He walked through the academy’s Elite Training Hall with a stride that was calm, controlled, utterly fearless. Conversations ceased the moment he stepped through the towering entrance doors, the heavy echo of his boots against the polished marble floor filling the vast space like a drumbeat.

Hundreds of eyes turned to him, wide with shock, curiosity, and, for the first time, genuine fear.

Whispers spread like wildfire.

"He shouldn't be here."

"That's Leo Carter...?"

"He’s stronger than an S-rank now, isn’t he?"

"What will he do next?"

Leo ignored them all. Their opinions meant nothing. Their judgments were meaningless.

He had one goal.

At the center of the hall, surrounded by a group of elite A-rankers, stood a singular figure—radiant and untouchable.

Elaine Windsor.

She was tall and elegant, her icy silver hair falling in waves down her back, her green eyes as sharp and cold as daggers. Every movement she made was precise, calculated. She was the only student whose talent and ambition had ever rivaled Ethan's—and now, she was the next piece Leo needed.

He walked straight toward her, never hesitating, never breaking stride.

Students parted before him like water before a ship.

Elaine’s group of admirers turned, sneering and bristling with hostility—but at a single glance from her, they fell silent, wary.

Leo stopped in front of her, their gazes locking like blades crossing in a duel.

"Train with me," he said, his voice clear and commanding, carrying easily across the hushed hall.

Elaine raised one elegant brow, tilting her head slightly as she studied him with cold amusement. Her green eyes flicked over him, sharp and probing.

"Why should I?" she asked, voice cool and detached.

Leo smirked, a flash of confidence so absolute it made the air vibrate.

"Because I’m the only one in this academy who can make you stronger."

A shocked gasp rippled through the gathered crowd.

Silence fell again, heavier, more charged.

Elaine’s lips curled into a smile—small, dangerous.

"Interesting," she murmured. "Fine. But don’t cry when I beat you."

Their handshake, swift and electric, marked a moment that would be burned into the memory of every student present.

Leo had not only challenged the academy’s unspoken hierarchy.

He had rewritten it.

And across the hall, standing stiffly against a pillar, Sophia watched it all unfold.

Watched as Leo—the man she had once cast aside—chose someone else.

Her heart twisted with a sharp, unfamiliar pain.

Jealousy.

For the first time in her privileged life, Sophia Vance felt the bitter sting of true jealousy.

Far beyond the walls of the academy, beyond the bustling cities and shining towers, beyond even the reach of the council’s influence, a hidden place pulsed with ancient, malevolent energy.

Deep within a cavern illuminated only by the sickly glow of a massive crystal, a man in black robes stood silently. The crystal’s surface swirled with shifting colors—reds, blacks, deep purples—and the energy it emitted throbbed in time with the man’s heartbeat.

The power within it mirrored the exact signature of the force Leo had released days ago.

The man’s lips curled into a slow, serpentine smile, revealing teeth too sharp, too perfect.

"So," he murmured, voice like velvet over a blade, "after all these years, another one has appeared."

Behind him, kneeling in perfect, fearful silence, were several hooded figures—disciples, loyal to a cause long thought dead.

One brave soul dared to speak.

"What are your orders, Master?"

The man’s smile widened into something monstrous, something hungry.

"Observe him," he said, his voice a low command. "Test him. Push him to his limits. Tear away the weak and reveal what lies beneath."

He turned slowly, the hem of his robe whispering across the stone floor like the hiss of a snake.

"And if he is truly the one we seek..."

A pause, heavy with dark promise.

"Bring him to me."

The crystal pulsed brighter, casting the cavern into a sea of blood-red light.

The hunt had begun.