Ashura's breath hitched, his mind reeling as he saw the horrific scene before him. Rows upon rows of massive glass tubes lined the dimly lit room, each one filled with a strange, glowing liquid. The air was thick with the pungent smell of chemicals, and the hum of machinery resonated like a heartbeat through the space.
*What... is this place?* he thought, eyes widening. The laboratory was unlike anything he had ever seen—a grotesque mockery of life, hidden deep beneath the academy. He scanned the room, his gaze falling upon the contents of each tube.
"Humans..." Ashura whispered, voice barely audible. Suspended within the tubes were people—young men and women, their bodies limp, their eyes closed as if in an unnatural sleep. Tubes and wires twisted around them like serpents, keeping them captive in this horrific display.
Ashura swallowed hard, trying to keep his composure. *Chairman Azure... just what kind of nightmare have you unleashed?* As a spy, he had seen many things, but this—this was beyond anything he could have imagined. His heart pounded furiously as he took in every detail, his training kicking in as he analyzed the scene for evidence.
*I have to report this... but first... I need to understand what's going on here,* he thought, his hand drifting toward the dagger strapped to his thigh. His instincts screamed at him to attack, to end the monster responsible for this abomination.
But then, as if sensing the tension in the air, the Chairman's voice broke through the silence.
"Ah… it's truly exhausting pretending to be human," Azure Julius said with a sigh, reaching up to his face.
Ashura froze, his eyes widening in disbelief. He watched in horror as the Chairman pinched his own skin and began to peel it away. The sound of tearing flesh filled the room, revealing something far more monstrous beneath—a twisted being with dark, leathery skin and eyes that glowed with an unnatural, predatory light.
"No way..." Ashura breathed, unable to look away.
The creature let out a low, sinister laugh that echoed through the lab. "Hahaha… just a little more, and I'll bring about a tragedy this academy has never seen. A festival of blood... oh, how I've longed for it!" The voice was no longer human, filled with a dark glee that sent chills down
Ashura's spine. "Can you imagine the despair on those noble faces when their precious children are torn apart? A pathetic end for the so-called elite!"
Ashura's blood ran cold. *A massacre... He's planning to slaughter everyone during the Great Festival of Hestia!* The pieces were falling into place, and the horror of it all made his stomach churn.
But even as his rage surged, a spy's discipline took over.* No, I can't blow my cover now. If I attack, I might not make it out alive. I need more information.if that things not the chairman azure Julius then i need to find where the real chairman Azure julis is.*
The creature before Ashura was a grotesque mockery of humanity. Its face was covered in boils and pimples, oozing foul, greenish fluid, and its eyes were wide, bloodshot, and slitted, glowing with an unnatural light. Its mouth was filled with jagged, fang-like teeth that stretched unnaturally wide, dripping with malice. The skin was leathery and decayed, with patches of scaly, rotting flesh, and cyst-like lumps that pulsed with sickness. Its limbs were long and twisted, with sharp talon-like claws, moving jerkily and unnaturally, like a mimic failing to hide its monstrous form. The air around it reeked of decay and rot, its presence an abomination that made Ashura's blood run cold.
While the monster was preoccupied with its work, Ashura analyzed the room, noticing three paths in the corner. He suspected that one of those paths might lead him to the real Chairman Azure.
*Dammit! I want to finish this in one go, but it's impossible with that monster still here. Staying in this form for too long takes a toll on my body. I guess I'll have to come back later when the monster isn't around,* Ashura thought, glaring at the three paths.
He quickly retreated, all the while keeping his focus on the paths he had entered, refusing to waste a glance at the monster that laughed maniacally.
*Soon… you will pay for this hideous crime,* Ashura thought as he hurriedly exited the place and made his way back through the tunnel he had arrived in. He then began to run forward, escaping the underground academy just as the sun began to rise.
"Ugh… another sleepless day," Ashura said as he emerged from his shadow, reciting, "Oh darkness, unveil my form, velum tenebrarum."
### HOXRRARY ACADEMY: FIRST YEAR DURAND CLASS
As Ashura stood at the entrance of the classroom, his sharp eyes took in the surroundings, the unfamiliar faces, and the low murmur of conversation. His lips quirked in a small, thoughtful frown as he muttered to himself, "So, our class is the Durand class."
He took another glance around. "It feels strange... like this place hasn't quite found its identity yet." He knew the drill—on the first and second days, the classes didn't have established names yet. The academy was still assessing each student's potential, figuring out where they belonged. But now, seeing the label "Durand," Ashura's mind flickered with curiosity.* I didn't expect them to finish the sorting this early...*
The other students, all dressed in their academy uniforms, seemed a mix of excitement and nervous energy. Some whispered to each other, while others fidgeted in place. Ashura's gaze lingered on them, his mind calculating.* Third place out of four… but how do they measure potential? *He spoke quietly under his breath, a murmur meant more for himself than anyone else.
But then his thoughts shifted, like the breeze changing direction. Leclair. The top-ranked class. The elite. Ashura couldn't help the flicker of intrigue that crossed his mind. He had overheard enough to know it was a place for the truly gifted, but the thought still held a certain weight for him.
"Leclair... that's where the best of the best are." His voice lowered as he continued, his tone almost reflective, "I've heard there are twelve students. Two of them, Ferris and Luzis. And His Highness Aurelian—the second prince." A shadow crossed his expression for a moment. *Royalty, huh? That alone is intimidating.*
His mind, sharp as ever, didn't stop there. He let the names flow like pieces in a puzzle, aligning themselves in his thoughts. "Then there's Zephyrus, the great disciple of the Great Magic Association. I've heard he's... incredible." He paused, his lips curving slightly into a smile, but there was something calculating in his gaze. "No wonder Leclair's ranked first."
Ashura's eyes seemed to glimmer with intrigue as he ran through more names in his mind. "And then there's Celestrius Aeonhart, heir to one of the highest-ranked noble families—the Aeonhart family. They've got quite the reputation." He leaned back slightly, letting the words sink in. "And Seraphina Cindervale... daughter of the great Cindervale family. Another name that's bound to carry weight."
He fell silent for a moment, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly, as if taking in the significance of what he just recalled.* And the others... I don't know much about them yet. *A faint smirk tugged at his lips, the mystery of Leclair only fueling his intrigue. "But if they're all in Leclair... I can only imagine the level of talent in that room."
Ashura was deep in thought when suddenly Edmond hugged him from behind.
"Ashura!!!! How rude! You didn't wait for me and came so early~~~" Edmond teased, resting his chin on Ashura's shoulder.
"Ah... my bad, Edmond," Ashura replied, breaking his train of thought. *I came straight to class without going back to the dormitory. I forgot that Edmond always waits for me... WAIT A MINUTE, SINCE WHEN DID WE BECOME WALKING TO CLASS PARTNERS?!*
Ashura's face turned to one of shock for a moment. Then another figure appeared.
"Good morning, Ashura. It seems like your wound has already healed; that's quite fast for your generation," Jarek said with a smile as he looked at Ashura's face.
Edmond glanced at Jarek and he began to tease him like usual, but before their banter could get too heated, a voice called out from the back of the room. "Hahaha... so our classroom has been labeled Durand class, huh? Not bad!" Liraeth announced with a grin, leaning casually against the wall.
"Yeah, it seems so," Jarek replied, his shoulders drooping slightly. "I was really hoping we'd get the Valmont title instead."
Edmond shrugged, trying to lighten the mood. "Well, we can't do anything about it. Our class has a lot of commoners, while the class choose as Valmont is full of nobles. That's pretty much why we ended up in Durand," he explained, reaching over to ruffle Ashura's hair.
At Edmond's words, many of the commoner students lowered their gazes, a collective sense of disappointment filling the air. They exchanged glances, feeling the weight of the situation settling heavily upon them. Ashura, on the other hand, remained unfazed. He propped his head lazily on his hand, resting his cheek against the cool surface of the table.
"It doesn't really matter," he said, his tone relaxed and almost drowsy. "I mean, the higher the class rank, the more expectations they have to meet, right?" He glanced around the room, a hint of mischief in his eyes. "I actually like this class; it means I can grow without all the stress. Who cares if it's full of commoners? In the end, the results are what count."
He gave a long, drawn-out yawn, slowly stretching his arms overhead. "Honestly, we can just do our best and let that speak for itself. Titles and ranks don't mean much when it's the effort that really defines us."
As he finished, the classroom fell silent. The other commoner students turned to him, surprise evident in their expressions. Even Edmond, Jarek, and Liraeth exchanged looks of astonishment, caught off guard by Ashura's laid-back yet surprisingly resolute words.