Rain crashes violently against the forest canopy.
A dull boom shakes the cave walls.
Inside, a man crawls through the mud, his face twisted by pure terror.
"Please—don't hurt me! I'll talk! I swear I'll tell you everything!"
Ella stands before him.
The white-haired professor looks down at him with undisguised disgust, her pale eyes cold and empty.
"You're even more pathetic than I imagined," she says flatly. "Utterly repulsive."
Behind her, Davina's group watches in stunned silence. Fear is still there—but strangely enough, so is a sense of safety. Eva leans closer to Davina.
"Care to explain? Why is Miss Ella here… threatening that guy?"
"I don't know any more than you do," Davina replies quietly. "But I'm pretty sure that 'poor man' was trying to kill me."
Eva shrugs.
"Then he deserves it. Come on—let's see if there's anything left of the Black Viper."
Ella continues to toy with the man, firing tiny beams of light that burn without killing. Casual. Controlled. Cruel in their restraint.
Davina watches silently.
(That strange feeling at the forest entrance… it wasn't a monster. It was her. She's been following us the entire time.)
Despite her bored expression, Ella administers punishment with surgical precision—like swatting an annoying insect.
Suddenly, the man grabs the cave wall and grins wildly.
"You insolent brat! You'll regret humiliating me! I'll take all of us down!"
Ella fires another beam, visibly annoyed.
"AGH! That hurts like hell!"
"You're starting to irritate me," she replies coolly.
The man slams his palm against the damp stone.
"You may be strong—but your explosion earlier woke up the nest beneath us. The anthill. They're coming… thousands of them!"
The ground erupts.
Giant ants burst from the cracks, each nearly half the height of a man.
Davina's friends freeze in horror.
Ella doesn't even blink.
She raises her hand, pins her index finger with her thumb—and flicks.
A tiny red bead shoots into the swarm.
"Explosion."
The shockwave obliterates the insects in an instant, reducing them to ash. A force field blooms around the group, blocking the backlash. Ella exhales softly.
"…Already over."
She turns to the man.
"You're coming with us."
The man trembles, boiling with helpless rage.
(What is she? Her power is unstable—yet overwhelming. She's stronger than army captains!)
Ella binds him with telekinesis using torn fabric and signals to move out.
Davina walks behind her in silence.
(She copied my spell… improved it… in less than a second. The gap between us is terrifying.)
Near the cave entrance, Ella suddenly stops.
Her telekinesis drops.
She steps in front of Davina.
A figure bursts from the trees—a man dressed like a ninja. He charges straight toward Davina, then abruptly shifts course when his eyes meet Ella's, lunging instead at Violetta.
Ella instantly forms a barrier.
And then she sees his eyes.
Azure blue.
The attacker rebounds off the cave walls, narrowly dodging Ella's light beams.
(Those reflexes… he's just like Alex.)
He dives from the ceiling, dagger aimed at Ella's head.
She notices a yellow bead on the ground.
Trap.
Ella dodges as the bead detonates—and appears directly in front of him.
"Checkmate."
She fires at point-blank range.
He ducks at the last second and, in the same motion, throws a dagger at Davina. Davina raises a shield—
Feint.
The man is already in front of Violetta, frozen in terror. His blade rises—
CLANG!
Steel collides.
"How interesting."
Alex stands there, dagger locked against the attacker's.
"You have the exact same eye color as me," he says calmly.
"Alex! What are you doing here?!" Ella snaps.
"What? Not allowed to help a friend in trouble?"
The ninja tries to retreat.
Alex crushes his arm.
A kick—Alex ducks.
Metal explodes into motion.
Daggers clash in a frantic storm. A punch—counter—deflection with a precise kick.
Alex is disarmed.
(He's good… he actually caught me off guard.)
They continue barehanded.
Alex slips past knife strikes with razor-thin movements, smashing wrists, breaking rhythm. A sweeping kick sends the ninja's blade flying.
Ella watches, captivated.
(It's like watching two Alexes fight. But ours adapts—instantly.)
Alex presses forward with relentless punches. The ninja blocks—until a brutal horizontal kick slams into his waist, sending him crashing into the cave wall.
Alex retrieves his dagger and points it at him.
"Give it up. You've lost."
The man doesn't respond.
He turns—and flees.
Leaping from tree to tree, he disappears into the fading rain.
Alex exhales and sheaths his blade.
"Why didn't you chase him?" Ella asks.
"Too much effort," Alex replies. "He'll show up again."
Violetta, shaking and bright red, approaches him.
"Th-thank you… for saving me."
Alex looks her straight in the eyes.
"It's nothing. What matters is that you're safe."
Davina watches her flustered friend and grimaces.
(It was just a thank-you… no need to go that far.)
Far above, on the academy rooftop, the man with azure eyes rips off his mask.
Young. About eighteen. Brown hair. Mature features twisted by hatred.
"That boy… I'll kill him with my own hands."
END OF CHAPTER
NEXT CHAPTER: Royal Academy – Act 1: The Boy with Azure Eyes