Chapter 12: Ignition

  Yawn.

  God, when was the st time I slept this well?

  As I slowly woke up, stretg my limbs, a sense of unfamiliar rexation washed over me. It felt strange. After twht weeks of relentless grinding—pushing my body and mind to their absolute limits—I was finally feeling alive again.

  I stared at the ceiling, my thoughts drifting. The past days had been wild.

  One moment, the world was normal. The ? The voice appeared. And then, just like that—everything desded into chaos.

  For the first time in what felt like forever, my mind wasn’t clouded by exhaustion. It was as if a dense fog had finally lifted, allowio think clearly.

  And that’s when I realized—

  I haven’t drawn anything sihis all started.

  Before the apocalypse, drawing had been my escape. My way of fighting against the crushing boredom, the endless feeling of being out of pce. It was the only thing that gave me a sense of purpose.

  But now? I don’t feel the need for it anymore.

  Because every time I create something—whether it’s a sword, a wall, a eique—I feel truly alive. Like I’ve finally found my calling.

  Maybe… I really was out of p the old world. Maybe I wasn’t meant for a life of dull routines and meaningless expectations. But here? Here, I create things that actually matter. Here, my imagination has no limits.

  Of course, I’m not blind. This world isn’t good—far from it. It’s brutal, merciless. If I want to survive, if I want to build something sting, it’s not going to be easy. But for the first time ever, I feel motivated enough to give it my all.

  But… to what end?

  I want to create. I want to grow stronger. I want to protect those I care about.

  But what am I really striving for?

  I don’t know yet. I’ll have to figure it out.

  My mind wao something else—the hidden mission from yesterday.

  [Creation is also Destru.]

  It made me realize something crucial. Creation aru—two opposite forces, yet inseparably linked.

  I always saw my ability as somethi to build. T forth hings ience. But what happens after something is created? urpose does it serve?

  A creation be used food…

  Or it bee a on. A force of destru.

  And that’s when it hit me—I’m close to unlog something new. I feel it. But something’s still blog me.

  I ched my fists, frustration creeping in. What am I missing?

  Sigh. No point ihinking it now.

  On the bright side, I did gain some useful rewards.

  My swordsmanship mastery was now 25% faster, thanks to the Sword Progenitor achievement. On top of that, I received 3 free points in all attributes and 3 Divine Essences—whatever those were used for.

  I barely even processed those notificatioerday, I was too exhausted. But they’re important.

  If hidden missio, it means there are rewards out there that I won’t even know about until I achieve them.

  Something to keep in mind.

  Alright, enough thinking. I o find Will.

  No clue what time it is, but I have a bad feeling he won’t be very patient.

  I got dressed, ed myself up, and stepped outside. The campus felt different—subtly off. But I didn’t have time to focus on it now.

  I made my way to Will’s favorite .

  Wheered, I found Will deep in versation with Lay.

  They hadn’t noticed me at first, but as the door creaked open, Will turo look at me.

  His expression shifted slightly—something about their versation seemed serious.

  I g Lay, but she simply looked away, as if brushing off my curiosity.

  “If it isn’t the sleepyhead,” Will said, crossing his arms. “Do you even know what time it is?”

  I let out a tired groan. “I don’t know… 10 AM?”

  Will smirked. “Not even close. It’s 4 PM.”

  Wait. What?!

  I stared at him in disbelief. Did I just sleep for 16 hours?!

  I always woke up at 5 AM sharp. Always. But this time…

  My body had just pletely shut down.

  For some reason, Lay was chug to herself, clearly enjoying my rea.

  This girl…

  “Alright, enough of that,” Will said, already heading toward the door. “e with me.”

  I sighed and followed. Something told me I wasn’t going to like what he had pnned.

  We reached a secluded area outside the dorm, a pce far enough from the main buildings that no one would actally stumble upon it.

  And that’s when I saw it.

  What. The. Fuck?

  A mutant bear y sprawled on the ground, its massive body rising and falling with shallow breaths. Four broken legs, deep gashes across its thick red fur—this thing had been through hell.

  I turo Will, my expression a mix of shod disbelief.

  Did he seriously drag this thing here… alive?!

  “So,” Will grinned, his excitement barely tained. “You like my target for your sword art?”

  I shifted my gaze to Lay, hoping for some kind of expnation. But she simply looked away, as if she wanted no part in this.

  “What the hell, Will?!” I snapped.

  “Bah, stop being a scaredy cat and just show me already.” He waved me off, pletely unfazed by my rea. “Don’t worry, it’s barely alive. Most of its bones are already broken. Just do your thing.”

  His eyes burned with expectation.

  I sighed. I should have seen this ing.

  Holy, I’d been hoping to dey showing him Bzing Surge for as long as possible. It still wasn’t fully stable, and I wasly keen on exploding myself in front of an audience.

  But if I refused, Will would just pester me relentlessly.

  Haaa… Whatever. Let’s do this.

  I stepped forward cautiously, my eyes locked onto the bloodied beast lying in front of me. Even in this state, its sheer size and presence were intimidating.

  Did Will really hunt this thing alohis m? How reckless…

  I materialized a sword, the familiar weight settling into my grip. As I got closer, the bear let out a weak, guttural growl, its golden eyes barely able to foe.

  I swallowed hard and started to trate.

  The problem? My ces of success with Bzing Surge were still only around 65%.

  Which meant there was about one in three ce I’d blow myself up along with the bear.

  Alright, let’s be positive. I got this.

  Focus.

  I could feel the familiar drain on my essence as my sub-ability began to el into the bde. The heat pulsed through my fingers, creeping toward the tip of the on, where I forced it into a trated point.

  Just as my bde pierced the bear’s flesh—

  “The Weave in, Sed Style: Bzing Surge.”

  BOOM!

  The explosion rocked the air around us, sending a fiery shockwave outward. The bear’s body—**or what was left of it—**was obliterated. Pieces of flesh and bone scattered like shraphe smell of burning fur filling my nostrils.

  Shit! I overdid it.

  I barely mao steady myself, but—

  I was still in one piece...

  Wait… I didn’t blow myself up?

  Then I realized—the bear’s body absorbed a signifit portion of the explosion.

  That’s an iing discovery. If Bzing Surge detonates inside an enemy, the explosion’s outward force is reduced. That means I might be able to trol its bst radius by adjusting my timing…

  But before I could even process my thoughts—

  “I see,” Will muttered, his eyes practically gleaming with i. “This teique is insanely powerful. But damn, Elian, yonna need some serious trol to use it properly.”

  “This… Have you gone insane, Elian?!”

  Unlike Will, who looked impressed, Lay was furious.

  She marched toward me, fire practically radiating off her skin.

  “Did you really think I wouldn’t figure out what you’re doing after seeing this?!” Her voice was sharp, acg.

  She cast a quice toward Will, hesitated for just a sed, then narrowed her violet eyes back at me.

  Yeah… She found out.

  I khis moment would e eventually, but that didn’t make it aerrifying.

  “Just how many times,” she hissed, “did you blow yourself up befetting it right?”

  “Ehem.” I coughed, looking anywhere but at her. “I-I never o blow myself up, you see! With my ability, it iece of—”

  Lay’s aura fred.

  “You…!”

  I swore, for a split sed, the air around her ignited.

  Oh, I definitely screwed up.

  Before she could set me on fire—

  “Alright, that’s enough.”

  A voice cut through the air like ice.

  We all turoward the dorm entrance.

  Leaning casually against the doorframe was the president.

  Her sharp blue eyes locked onto me, unreadable as always.

  “I’ve waited long enough,” she said coolly. “All of you. To my offiow.”

  I didn’t o be told twice. I practically bolted after her.

  As we made our way through the campus, I could feel dozens of eyes on us.

  People whispered. Low murmurs filled the air.

  Most of the attention was directed at the president. Some students watched her with hope—a desperate kind, as if ging to the st remnants of order.

  But… I also noticed something else.

  A few of them weren’t looking at her with hope.

  They were looking at her with rese.

  Did things really get this bad while I was too focused on training?

  I ched my jaw, my exhaustion suddenly feeling a lot heavier.

  By the time we reached her office, I had a sinking feeling that this meeting wasn’t going to be pleasant.