Chapter 34: We Want You Back

Chapter 34: Chapter 34: We Want You Back

He stepped forward and pulled out his identification badge.

"I’m with the Extraordinary Affairs Division," he announced.

The moment those words left his mouth, the surrounding noise died down. The students, bodyguards, and onlookers all turned toward him.

The Extraordinary Affairs Division wasn’t an organization ordinary people could afford to disregard.

It was a powerful government institution responsible for matters involving awakened martial artists, extraordinary bloodlines, and dangerous supernatural incidents.

Grant raised his badge so everyone could see it clearly. Then his attention returned to Mira.

"You’re the one who awakened the Frost Phoenix Bloodline, correct?" he asked.

Mira’s expression showed that she hadn’t expected the question.

Grant took her silence as uncertainty and continued.

"If you are, I’d like to discuss something with you," he said.

"Would you consider joining the Extraordinary Affairs Division?" he offered.

Mira looked slightly stunned.

Grant immediately explained why he was asking.

"You may not realize it yet, but awakening a bloodline of this level changes your situation completely," he said.

"Once news gets out, there will be people who want to recruit you," he continued.

"And there will also be people who would rather eliminate you before you become powerful enough to threaten them," he added.

He lowered his badge.

"The Extraordinary Affairs Division can protect you," he said.

"More importantly, if you join us, you’ll have access to resources and guidance that can help you develop your bloodline and continue advancing your cultivation," he finished.

This wasn’t simply Grant making a spontaneous offer. It was exactly what his superiors had instructed him to do.

Find the awakened individual. Secure them. Then place them under government protection before another faction could reach them.

Unfortunately, Grant had barely finished speaking when another voice came from behind the crowd.

"Captain Grant," the voice called, calm but carrying enough authority to immediately draw everyone’s attention.

"Are you implying that Arcadia Academy can’t protect one of its own students?" the voice pressed.

Grant’s expression changed. He turned around.

A familiar man was walking toward them.

Caleb Hart, Arcadia Academy’s security director and one of its instructors.

Grant knew him, and Caleb knew him as well. Grant’s expression tightened. This was exactly the complication he had been hoping to avoid.

Arcadia Academy wasn’t an ordinary martial academy. As one of Valemont’s most influential institutions, and the only academy in the city established directly under government authority, it possessed considerable standing.

Its authority wasn’t far below that of the Extraordinary Affairs Division itself.

Caleb stopped in front of them. His eyes moved from Grant to Mira. Then his expression brightened.

"Well, this is certainly an unexpected surprise," he said.

He looked directly at Mira.

"Mira, you’ve really managed to surprise us," he said.

Mira looked at him quietly.

Caleb knew her history. Before her condition deteriorated, Mira had been one of Arcadia Academy’s most promising students.

Caleb had personally kept an eye on her progress. He had even planned to bring her into his class once she advanced to the next stage of her studies.

Then everything changed. Her cultivation began declining.

Month after month, the academy tried to help her. Nothing worked. After half a year without improvement, Arcadia Academy had eventually been forced to follow its regulations and remove her from the student body.

Caleb had always considered it unfortunate. A promising student had seemingly fallen from grace overnight.

But now, standing before him was that same student after awakening the extraordinary Frost Phoenix Bloodline.

How could Arcadia Academy possibly let her go again?

Caleb’s eyes gleamed.

This was a second chance.

"We’re going back to Arcadia Academy," he announced.

He turned toward the others.

"Let’s settle everything there," he said.

The Carter family’s bodyguards immediately stepped forward.

"Wait!" one shouted.

"Nobody leaves until the family head arrives!" another added.

Caleb’s expression instantly darkened.

"The family head?" he echoed.

He slowly turned toward the speaker.

"Since when does the Carter family get to interfere with Arcadia Academy’s affairs?" he demanded.

The bodyguard’s expression stiffened. He knew exactly who Caleb was.

Even though he was a fourth star Foundation Establishment martial artist himself, he wasn’t foolish enough to casually challenge an academy official.

Still, Ethan was dead. The Carter family would demand answers.

"Director Hart," he said through gritted teeth, "our young master is dead. The Carter family deserves an explanation," he added.

"An explanation?" Caleb said, giving him a cold look.

"Your young master brought bodyguards here to cause trouble," he said.

"He then deployed a seventh star Foundation Establishment puppet and ordered it to kill someone," he continued.

Caleb’s gaze shifted briefly toward Ethan’s body.

"And now you want an explanation for his death?" he asked.

The bodyguard’s face darkened.

Caleb didn’t give him a chance to interrupt.

"From everything I’ve heard, neither Mira nor Evelyn directly attacked him," he said.

"And even if they had, your young master was the one who escalated this situation to the point of attempted murder," he added, his voice becoming colder.

"Once he ordered that puppet to kill Xavier, he accepted whatever consequences followed," he said.

The bodyguard clenched his fists.

"But—" he started.

"Enough," Caleb cut him off.

"You’re standing in front of an academy official and still trying to defend an attack that could have killed one of our people," he said.

The bodyguard’s expression turned ugly.

"Director Hart, you can’t just—" he started.

Bang!

Caleb moved. His palm struck the man’s chest and sent him flying backward. The bodyguard crashed onto the pavement, coughing painfully.

Caleb calmly lowered his hand.

"Know your place," he said.

The remaining bodyguards immediately fell silent.

Caleb turned away from them as though they were no longer worth his attention.

"Mira. Evelyn. Xavier," he said.

He looked toward Marcus.

"And you too," he added.

"Let’s go," he said.

This time, none of the Carter family’s men dared stop them.

By the time they entered Arcadia Academy, the news had already spread like wildfire.

"Isn’t that Mira?" someone whispered.

"That’s definitely her!" another said.

"But wasn’t she expelled?" someone asked.

"How is she back?" another wondered.

"You haven’t heard? She awakened the Frost Phoenix Bloodline!" someone else said.

"What?!" a voice exclaimed.

"And Ethan is dead!" another added.

"Wait, Ethan actually died?" someone gasped.

"Yes!" came the reply.

"Did Mira kill him?" someone asked.

"Not exactly. He tried to have Xavier killed with that puppet, and then he suddenly collapsed," another explained.

"Either way, the Carter family won’t let this go," someone said.

"Of course they won’t. Ethan was their heir," another agreed.

"And Mira isn’t even protected by her family anymore," someone pointed out.

"She’s going to have trouble," another murmured.

"Forget that. What exactly is the Frost Phoenix Bloodline?" someone else asked.

The whispers followed the group as they walked through the academy.

There was simply too much happening at once. Evelyn had protected Xavier. Mira had appeared and done the same. Ethan had died.

And, most shocking of all, Mira had awakened the Frost Phoenix Bloodline. Any one of those developments would have been enough to shake Arcadia Academy.

Together, they had become the biggest story on campus.

Caleb ignored the students’ curious stares and continued toward the administration building. Grant followed. He clearly wasn’t willing to give up yet.

Once they reached the principal’s office, Grant glanced at Caleb.

"So Mira was actually expelled from Arcadia Academy?" he asked.

Caleb looked at him.

"She was," he confirmed.

Grant raised an eyebrow.

"And you neglected to mention that earlier?" he pressed.

Caleb smiled.

"You didn’t ask," he said.

Grant opened his mouth to respond. Caleb continued before he could.

"Besides, being expelled doesn’t mean her relationship with the academy has to end permanently," he said.

He turned toward Mira. ℴ

"If the academy decides to restore your student status, you can return," he said.

His smile became warmer.

"Can’t you, Mira?" he added.

Grant was about to object. But before he could say anything, the office door opened.

Arcadia Academy’s vice principal stepped out. He had clearly heard the conversation. With a smile, he looked directly at Mira.

"Caleb is right," he said.

Then he extended his hand toward her.

"Mira, you’ve already shown us that your talent hasn’t disappeared," he said.

"So, what do you say?" he asked.

"Would you like to come back to Arcadia Academy?" he finished.

The man who stepped forward was Johnny Sue, Arcadia Academy’s vice principal.

Although the title suggested otherwise, everyone inside the academy knew that Johnny was effectively the highest ranking administrator handling the school’s internal affairs.

The principal rarely involved himself in martial affairs. He was primarily responsible for external relations, negotiations, and representing the academy in official matters. He wasn’t even a martial artist.

That left Johnny to handle almost everything that actually happened inside Arcadia Academy.

And he already knew exactly what had happened outside the academy. The moment the incident at the plaza had occurred, information had reached him.

As far as Johnny was concerned, Ethan’s death wasn’t something worth dwelling on. The young man had brought armed bodyguards to confront Xavier, escalated the situation, and even unleashed a seventh star Foundation Establishment puppet with the intention of killing someone.

Whatever happened afterward was ultimately the consequence of his own actions.

The Carter family might be wealthy and influential, but wealth didn’t give them the authority to dictate how Arcadia Academy handled its affairs.

There was another reason Johnny had personally come out to meet Mira.

The Frost Phoenix Bloodline.

Johnny had known Mira long before today. In fact, he had been one of the people who fought hardest to save her when her cultivation began mysteriously declining.

He had personally overseen what the academy called the Mira Recovery Initiative.

During those six months, Arcadia Academy had poured considerable resources into her treatment and cultivation, desperately trying to discover why her strength continued falling despite her efforts.

Unfortunately, none of their attempts worked. Eventually, the academy had no choice but to enforce its regulations and remove her from the student body.

Johnny had hated that decision. But as vice principal, he couldn’t simply disregard the academy’s rules because he sympathized with one student.

Now, however, everything had changed. Even if Mira’s original condition hadn’t been completely resolved, awakening the Frost Phoenix Bloodline was enough to change the equation.

It was widely regarded as one of the most powerful extraordinary bloodlines in existence. There was no way Arcadia Academy would willingly let a talent like that walk away.

And Johnny had another reason for wanting her back.