Chapter 249: The Ascent to Stage Three

Northern Region - Blackridge Tower...

The defeated North Pantheon students were still recovering when Valecrest Academy began its ascent.

The staircase stretched upward through the center of Blackridge Tower, disappearing into darkness.

Blue light ran along its edges. Every few seconds, ancient symbols appeared across the walls before fading away.

Christian stood at the bottom, staring upward.

"How many floors does this place have?"

"Too many," Peter answered, looking up.

Darren glanced at him. "That’s your expert opinion?"

"Yes."

"You’re an idiot."

"Thank you."

Neil turned toward the team.

"Enough. We have fifteen minutes." He checked the time displayed on his communication device. "Everyone, move."

The Valecrest students began climbing.

Silas followed behind them with Chloe, while Alpha walked beside them. Silas and Neil had decided to play a game, and very soon, the results would start showing themselves.

The feminine-looking young man had his hands behind his head, his long hair swaying slightly as he climbed. He looked completely relaxed.

Chloe glanced at him. "You’re not tired?"

"Nope." Alpha smiled.

"After what you did outside?"

"That was a warm-up."

Neil, several steps ahead, heard him. "Please don’t say things like that."

Alpha tilted his head.

"Why?"

"Because I don’t want to know what your actual warm-up looks like."

Christian laughed.

"Same."

Alpha grinned.

"Fair enough."

"Silas has really influenced you badly."

"..."

***

The staircase opened into a large circular platform. At the center stood a glowing blue crystal.

A system panel appeared.

[STAGE TWO COMPLETE.]

[VALECREST ACADEMY HAS QUALIFIED FOR THE NEXT STAGE.]

[CURRENT POSITION: NORTHERN REGION.]

[STAGE THREE PREPARATION AREA IDENTIFIED.]

[ALL QUALIFIED MEMBERS MUST REMAIN WITHIN THE DESIGNATED AREA.]

[STAGE THREE WILL BEGIN AFTER THE PREPARATION PERIOD.]

The students stopped.

"That’s it?" Christian asked in confusion.

Neil nodded. "Looks like it."

Peter immediately sat down.

"Good."

Darren dropped beside him.

"Finally."

Salmoa leaned against the wall. Natalia sat nearby, checking the injuries on her arms. Victor was examining his weapon.

The North Pantheon students had been left on the lower floor.

Their academy had been eliminated, but the tournament system had not yet removed them from the tower. They were allowed to remain until the next stage began.

Silas looked around the platform.

"Pretty nice."

Chloe nodded. "Much better than the streets."

Alpha walked toward the crystal. Neil immediately turned.

"Alpha."

"Yes?"

"Don’t touch it."

"I wasn’t going to."

Neil narrowed his eyes.

"You were absolutely going to."

Alpha smiled. "Maybe."

Neil sighed. "Please sit down."

Alpha looked at the floor- then sat. The entire platform shook slightly.

Christian glanced at him.

"Why does everything feel more dangerous when you sit down?"

Alpha shrugged.

"Natural talent."

***

The fifteen-minute preparation period began. The crystal emitted a soft blue glow, and a countdown appeared above it.

[PREPARATION TIME: 14:59]

Neil gathered the team.

"Everyone, listen." The students moved closer. "Stage Three is going to be harder."

Peter raised a hand.

"How do you know?"

Neil pointed at the tower.

"Because the system keeps increasing the difficulty."

Darren nodded as Neil continued.

"We don’t know the objective yet. We don’t know the environment. We don’t know how many academies remain."

He looked at Alpha.

"Most importantly, we don’t know what kind of opponents we’ll face."

Alpha smiled.

"That part should be fun."

Neil ignored him.

"Everyone needs to stay together. No unnecessary risks."

Christian raised his hand.

"What counts as unnecessary?"

Neil stared at him.

"Anything involving Silas."

Silas, sitting nearby, looked offended.

"Why am I always involved?"

"Because you are always involved."

Chloe couldn’t help but laugh.

Neil continued.

"Silas, Chloe, and Alpha..." He paused. "Actually, Alpha, you can fight if necessary."

Alpha nodded. Silas raised his hand.

"What about me?"

"You can fight if necessary too."

Silas smiled.

"Great."

"But don’t start a war."

Silas’s smile disappeared.

"That’s a very specific restriction."

"Because you need a very specific restriction."

Christian burst out laughing.

While the others rested, Chloe moved toward the edge of the platform. Silas followed. The two stood beside a tall window overlooking the Northern Region. From this height, the ruined city looked almost peaceful.

The battlefield was still burning in places. Distant explosions flashed across the horizon.

Chloe folded her arms.

"Do you think the other academies made it?"

Silas looked down.

"Some of them."

"Erovile and Ironvale?"

"Probably."

Chloe frowned.

"Probably?"

Silas shrugged.

"Wilson’s strong." He glanced toward the battlefield below. "And the Ironvale captain looked tough too."

Chloe smiled.

"You’re actually paying attention."

"I pay attention to everything."

She looked at him.

"That’s not true."

"What?"

"You didn’t notice Alpha was a guy until..."

"Wait."

Alpha was sitting several meters away, looking at his hands.

Silas turned back to Chloe.

"He’s a guy?"

Chloe stared at him.

"Silas."

"What?"

"Alpha is a guy, and you know it. Don’t let him hear you."

Silas looked back. Alpha raised an eyebrow.

"Yes."

Silas blinked. Then nodded slowly.

"Right. Sup bro!"

"Suspicious..." Alpha muttered with narrowed eyes.

"You are really hopeless."

Silas scratched his cheek.

"He looks more of a girl, though."

Alpha called from across the platform.

"I heard that."

Silas waved.

"Sorry, bro."

Alpha smiled.

"Don’t worry about it."

Neil, who had also heard the conversation, rubbed his forehead.

"Can we please focus on the tournament?"

Christian laughed so hard he nearly fell over.

Soon the countdown reached zero.

[PREPARATION PERIOD COMPLETE.]

The blue crystal suddenly brightened, and a massive system panel appeared above the platform. Every student turned toward it.

[STAGE THREE WILL NOW BEGIN.]

[OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE.]

"That’s it?"

The system continued.

[ALL REMAINING ACADEMIES WILL BE TRANSPORTED TO THE DESIGNATED BATTLEFIELD.]

[ACADEMIES WILL BE DIVIDED INTO TEAMS.]

[TEAM COMPOSITION WILL BE RANDOMIZED.]

[ALL MEMBERS OF EACH TEAM MUST SURVIVE.]

[FAILURE TO PROTECT YOUR TEAM MEMBERS WILL RESULT IN DISQUALIFICATION.]

Neil’s expression changed.

"Randomized teams?"

Darren frowned.

"That means we might be separated."

Peter looked toward the others.

"That’s bad."

The system continued.

[STAGE THREE DURATION: SIXTY MINUTES.]

[ADDITIONAL CONDITION.]

Everyone froze.

[THE BATTLEFIELD WILL CONTAIN MULTIPLE A-RANK TO E-RANK MONSTERS.]

Christian’s jaw dropped.

"Multiple?"

The system remained silent for a moment.

Then: [GOOD LUCK.]

The blue crystal exploded with light, and a wave of energy swept across the platform.

Silas grinned. "Oh, this is going to be fun."

Chloe sighed, while Alpha stood, his long hair shifting as he stretched.

"Finally."

Neil raised his weapon.

"Everyone, stay alert."

The light grew brighter, and the platform disappeared.

***

The first thing Neil noticed was the wind. It was cold, and sharp, and carried the smell of blood. He opened his eyes.

They were standing in a vast forest. Towering trees surrounded them, while thick mist covered the ground. The sky was dark with no visible checkpoint. It was just an enormous forest stretching in every direction.

Christian looked around. "Where are we?"

Darren frowned.

"This wasn’t on the map."

Victor checked his communication device.

"No signal."

Natalia looked toward the trees.

"We’ve been transported."

Neil nodded.

"Everyone, stay together."

A voice suddenly echoed from the darkness.

"Valecrest."

Everyone froze.

Neil turned as a group of students emerged from between the trees. Their uniforms were different, and their weapons were drawn.

Silas tilted his head.

"Oh." He smiled. "Friends?"

The opposing captain stepped forward.

"No." He raised his weapon. "Enemies."

The system appeared above the forest.

[STAGE THREE HAS BEGUN.]

[TEAM ASSIGNMENTS COMPLETE.]

[VALECREST ACADEMY HAS BEEN ASSIGNED TO TEAM ONE.]

[TEAM ONE OBJECTIVE: SURVIVE.]

[WARNING.]

[HOSTILE ACADEMIES DETECTED.]

[WARNING.]

[A-RANK MONSTERS DETECTED.]

[WARNING.]

[MONSTER MOVEMENT DETECTED.]

The trees behind the opposing academy suddenly exploded, and a massive creature emerged from the mist- then another.

The enemy students turned.

"What the hell?!"

The first monster roared, and the sound shook the forest.

"Well..." Silas said, cracking his neck. "Guess we have company."

Neil raised his weapon, and the forest erupted into chaos.

To be continued...