Chapter 120: Marionette

Standing in front of Klade was a group of students composed of members from various Houses. What caught his attention even more was that they were standing in a clear formation, as though they had prepared for this beforehand.

“Teacher! Is this even allowed? There are multiple students standing on this platform before, but it didn’t collapse.” Klade asked

“Hmm…” Isaak placed a hand on his chin as he observed the scene.

A few moments later, a smile slowly appeared on his face as he figured out what was actually happening.

“There is no problem. It completely abides by the rules.” He raised his hand and made an okay sign.

“What?”

Klade was genuinely surprised. He looked back at the group, trying to understand what loophole they had exploited. However, he did not dwell on it for long.

Whether it was fair or not did not matter. Even in the real world, there was no such thing as absolute fairness.

After all, victory had never belonged to the fairest competitor. It belonged to the strongest one. Instead of complaining, he would simply have to overcome them.

Klade brought out his staff.

It was a magnificent staff forged from volcanic stone, glowing with a bright crimson hue. The grip was crafted from beautiful silver, polished to such perfection that it gleamed under the lights.

The weapon suited him perfectly. Both his appearance and his status as royalty were complemented by its elegant and imposing design.

However, before he could make his next move, he suddenly heard several voices.

“Please help us! We cannot control our bodies!”

“We are attacking on our own!”

The voices came from the group of students. Among them was Max, whose face was filled with terror.

“He is among us! Defeat him!” Max shouted desperately.

Klade narrowed his eyes. Something was clearly wrong. The students appeared frightened, yet they were still maintaining their formation.

For a brief moment, he considered their words. However, he remained calm. It could very well be an enemy’s attempt to distract him.

Without lowering his guard, Klade raised his staff. A summoning circle immediately appeared in front lf him.

“Come forth, Blazeo.”

A burst of flames erupted before him. From within the inferno emerged a majestic beast, Blazeo. It was the final evolution of Flamlio and a Rank A monster.

Its body resembled that of a mighty lion, standing nearly three meters tall. A blazing mane of fire flowed around its neck, illuminating the surroundings with a fiery glow.

The moment Blazeo appeared, the temperature around Klade noticeably rose.

The students on the opposite platform immediately felt the pressure emitted by the powerful monster.

Klade pointed his staff forward. Regardless of what tricks his opponents were using, he would face them head-on.

Klade decided that he did not need to summon his dragon to deal with them. His Blazeo was more than enough for this battle.

“Go, Blazeo! Burn them to ashes!”

Blazeo roared and charged forward. Each of its powerful steps left blazing flames on the platform, turning its path into a trail of fire.

The students’ faces turned pale at the sight of the approaching beast. The pressure emitted by a Rank A monster was overwhelming. Yet despite their fear, they could do nothing.

Suddenly, every one of them raised their weapons. The students at the front stepped forward and lifted their shields, forming a defensive wall against the charging monster.

BAM!!

The collision shook the entire platform. Five students used their shields to block Blazeo’s charge. However, the difference in strength was simply too great.

The moment the impact occurred, all five were sent flying backward. Their shields cracked, and their bodies were blasted toward the edge of the platform.

Klade smiled. With fewer students remaining, the battle would become much easier. But then…something unexpected happened.

The students who should have been eliminated suddenly stopped in midair before they were being pulled by invisible forces that dragged them back toward the platform.

Like puppets being reeled in by unseen strings, their bodies slowly returned to their original positions.

“Puppets?!”

Klade finally realized what was happening. There was only one explanation. It seemed the students had not been lying after all.

“There is someone controlling them. But who?”

Klade narrowed his eyes and carefully scanned the group of students. One by one, he examined their faces. Then he noticed something unusual. Among the sea of uniforms from various Houses stood a single figure wearing a completely different color.

A black uniform.

“You!”

Klade immediately pointed his staff toward that person.

“Blazeo! Charge!”

At the same time, he began channeling mana into his staff. Because all of his monsters possessed the flame element, they synergized perfectly with his weapon.

The Nova Staff, a powerful staff capable of greatly amplifying fire-based abilities. Flames gathered around it, growing larger and larger.

“Nova Blast!”

Klade thrust his staff forward. A massive sphere of fire shot toward the group like a miniature sun. He did not care about the students standing in the way.

If he could not push them off the platform, then he would simply burn through them.

BOOM!!

An explosion engulfed the entire platform and flames erupted in all directions. The screams of students heard through the arena. One after another, their bodies transformed into light and disappeared.

The explosion continued raging for several seconds before gradually subsiding. Then suddenly, a figure burst out from the center of the inferno. The person leaped high above the flames, avoiding the full force of the attack.

Klade’s eyes narrowed. As expected. The real target was still alive.

Meanwhile, the remaining students caught in the blast began disappearing one after another.

“Urgh… to think I would be defeated like this. What a shame.” That was Max’s final sentence. Moments later, his body dissolved into particles of light and vanished from the platform.

The figure landed gracefully on the platform before slowly raising her body. A grin spread across her face.

“Hello, Klade!”

She greeted him loudly while sticking out her tongue in a mocking manner. The woman had dark purple hair that flowed down to her shoulders and striking black eyes.

Several piercings could be seen on her eyebrows, nose, ears, and even her tongue, giving her a rebellious appearance.

“Lucretia…” Klade muttered.

Of course, he knew exactly who she was. Lucretia was one of the youngest members of Obsidia, a powerful exclusive guild that ruled over one of the kingdom’s duchies.

Despite her age, she had already gained a considerable reputation among tamers. Klade had crossed paths with Obsidia several times in the past.

His own guild, Excalibur, was a direct rival of Obsidia. The two organizations frequently competed for resources, territories, and influence. As a result, the relationship between them was far from friendly.

“Oh? You still remember me. I feel honored.” Lucretia tilted her head and smiled even wider. Her black eyes narrowed playfully.

“Of course,” Klade replied. “Who would forget the girl who single-handedly destroyed an entire county on her own? It seems you have a new monster now.”

“Ahh! You finally noticed it!” Lucretia clapped her hands excitedly. “Then let me introduce you to my new friend, Abedi!”

Suddenly, a sinister presence emerged from behind her. A floating puppet-like creature slowly appeared from the shadows.

It was tall and unnaturally thin, with six elongated arms moving around countless invisible threads. Three masks floated around its head, constantly shifting positions as if deciding which face to wear next.

Each mask carried a different expression. One smiled, one cried and one screamed. Its appearance was horrifying, exactly what one would expect from a Fiend-type monster.

Blazeo immediately lowered its body and growled. Even the Rank A beast could sense the danger from the creature.

“So you finally got your own Unique monster.”

Unlike ordinary monsters that could be found and tamed in dungeons, a Unique monster existed only once in the entire world. There would never be a second one.

Each Unique monster possessed abilities and characteristics unlike anything else. And in the hands of someone like Lucretia, that made them even more dangerous.

After all, Lucretia herself was already considered a monster by many. A battle maniac and a prodigy. A woman who smiled while causing destruction.

Before this, she had only used standard monsters that could be obtained by other tamers. Yet despite that, she had already managed to build a terrifying reputation.

Now, she possessed a Unique monster. That fact alone was enough to make Klade take this battle seriously.

“Isn’t it cute?” Lucretia grinned.

“Yes. It is cute… if it burns to ashes!” The moment he finished speaking, Klade dashed forward.

“Nova Blast!”

He thrust his staff forward, releasing a massive sphere of blazing fire toward Lucretia. The attack roared across the platform.However, Klade did not stop there.

“Burning Tower!”

A magic circle appeared beneath Lucretia’s feet.

BOOM!

A towering pillar of flames erupted from the ground, shooting high into the sky and engulfing the area.

“Hahaha!”

Lucretia simply laughed. She twisted her body and effortlessly dodged the incoming attacks, moving through the battlefield with unnatural agility.

The flames exploded around her, but none managed to touch her. Then she charged forward. In her hand appeared a terrifying scythe, Screaming Nightmare.

The weapon’s dark blade seemed to absorb the surrounding light, while countless faint whispers heard from it. Lucretia swung the scythe toward Klade’s neck.

CLANG!

Klade immediately reacted. With a swift motion, he pulled a hidden blade from within the Nova Staff. The transformation was instant as the staff separated, revealing a sleek rapier concealed inside.

This was the true specialty of his weapon. It actually possessed two forms. Nova Staff, and Nova Piercer.

The rapier served as his close-combat weapon, while the staff acted as both its sheath and a catalyst for his magic.

The tip of Nova Piercer met Screaming Nightmare head-on. Sparks erupted as the two weapons collided.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

The battle immediately intensified. Lucretia swung her scythe in wide, deadly arcs. While Klade countered with precise thrusts and bursts of flame magic.

Neither side held back. Their weapons flashed repeatedly as fire and dark energy clashed across the platform.

Meanwhile, Blazeo roared and joined the fight, sending waves of flames toward Lucretia. Abedi floated behind its master, its six arms dancing through the air as invisible threads spread across the battlefield.

The platform trembled beneath the intensity of their battle as two monsters among the students had finally collided.

However, the balance of the battle suddenly tipped. Abedi’s threads shot forward without warning. They moved so quickly that they were almost impossible to see.

“Blazeo!” Klade shouted.

But it was already too late. Several threads had already wrapped around Blazeo’s body. Then, Blazeo slowly turned around and now facing him. Blazeo growled and tried to resist.

Its body shook as flames erupted from its mane, but no matter how hard it fought, it could not break free from Abedi’s control.

At that moment, one of Abedi’s masks rotated. The smiling mask rotated and in its place appeared a screaming mask.

The atmosphere instantly became more sinister. Without hesitation, Blazeo charged toward Klade.

BOOM!!

The blazing beast slammed into the platform. A massive explosion erupted at the point of impact. Fortunately, Klade managed to dash away at the last second.

He landed several meters away and clicked his tongue.

“What an annoying monster.”

His eyes remained fixed on Abedi. Monster control abilities were already troublesome enough. But Abedi’s control was far stronger than any ordinary charm or domination skill. Even Blazeo, a powerful Rank A monster, had fallen under its influence almost instantly.

Meanwhile, Lucretia casually rested her scythe on her shoulder. She looked completely relaxed, as though she were merely watching a show.

“Now let’s see a monster against its own tamer. It should be very interesting. Hahaha!”

Behind her, Abedi’s screaming mask continued staring at Klade while countless threads danced through the air like the strings of a puppeteer.

For the first time in the battle, Klade found himself at a disadvantage.And the one threatening him the most was his own monster.