A crack of wood splitting open rang out over the training field.
Jennifer's wooden sword moved in flashed, golden aura glowing, it moved precisely with elegant and clean arc that didn't let up. Abraham met it mid-swing, his wooden blade colliding with hers in a shriek of friction.
Crack.
The wood gave way again.
Both their swords snapped — splinters scattering in the morning air like the remnants of battle.
"Ninth pair," Abraham muttered, tossing the broken hilt aside. Sweat rolled down his temple. His dark training coat stuck to his chest as he breathed deeply from exhaustion.
Jennifer let out a long breath, since she got a space to breath, her golden colored tresses stuck to her red tired face. "You're holding me while holding back yourself from hurting me, don't you??"
He's corner of mouth curled up to a soft smile as he wiped blood from a small cut on his forearm. "Holding back?, hell no, I'd be long dead if I hold back against you."
Regardless of the sharpness in her eyes and her harsh tone, a slight smile touched her lips.
They each grabbed two more wooden swords aggrievedly with impression less face from the stack, tenth pair ready to break. Both unwilling to show how tired they were. Even though Abraham can go like this whole day. But Jennifer is almost hit her limit, so for her Abraham has to end this. Around them, the students who had gathered to watch were long gone — the duel had lasted almost two hours, and none could match their pace or their stubbornness.
Abraham charged first this time, his footwork a blur. The impact of his blows reverberated through the entire training yard. Jennifer stood firm, blocking each attack. Pale golden mana made her eyes glow.
He lampooned "You're cheating again,". gritted his teeth
Jennifer with smiley face replied "Using mana isn't count as cheating," spinning as she moved and sending a counter-swipe that sliced through the air. "If you're facing a opponent who is thousand time stronger than you"
He ducked under the strike, spun behind her, and landed a clean tap on her shoulder.
"Flattering with words, won't work on me lady" he whispered near her ear, "See you lost to the thousand time stronger than you, seems you've got good eyes like your father."
They stare at each other for moment like talking thorough eyes.
For a heartbeat, silence. Only the sound of their breathing.
Then—
BOOOOOOM!
The sky split open.
A large explosion ripped through Murrchel Academy's center. The ground shook from the force like living storm. The training field cracked beneath their feet.
Abraham's ears rang; he turned toward the epicenter.
"The central tower…" he muttered. "It's—"
The main tower — the heart of Murrchel — erupted into flames. Debris scattered across the entire academy. Windows shattered. The air itself screamed.
Jennifer's golden aura flared instinctively as she threw up a barrier around the nearby students, shielding them from the first burst of heat.
The tower fell.
Smoke and fire rose like magical instruments collided, filling the sky with red and gray.
Abraham ran fast through the disorder. "Jennifer! Come on!"
They raced toward the center. Students who got saved by inch are fleeing opposite of the destruction their eyes in total horror of fire and destruction, many injured and bloodied students also running opposite. academy marble road fractured in thousand box as flames spread along all the way
Ruins of the academy tower were a sight of utter devastation. Stone and metal were warped in heat of the destruction flame, and the surface beneath is scarred and turned black of ashes. teachers and healers hurried to rescue those trapped within the ruins. The surroundings was thick with the odor of ozone and the ashy remnants of mana.
Then — silence again.
All around the surrounding began to vibrate with a deep, unsettling buzz resounded in atmosphere. Dust particles swirled as a large dark shape appeared through the vanishing smoke.
At first, it seemed like a mountain. Then the light struck its edges — sleek, metallic, alien.
A vessel. Not of this world. The structure pulsed faintly with runes that glowed like the veins of stars — curved, segmented, humming with life. The metal whispered like thunder restrained.
It had fallen from the heavens.
And now, resting amid the ruins of Murrchel, it glimmered with a sinister light.
Jennifer's voice broke the silence. "Is that… a ship?"
Before Abraham could answer, four figures rose from the smoking crater — floating.
They were surrounded by coils of green smoke that hissed like living serpents, keeping them aloft. Two women, two men — their hair pale green, their attire a strange mix of white armor and metallic cloth, etched with unfamiliar glyphs.
The one standing in the center was clearly their leader — For the distance his face is not quiet visible but his body texture tall, muscular, his expression calm yet dreadful. His eyes… silver and black, like dying stars.
When he spoke, the air itself seemed to pause.
"I… am Solvane Thrommer."
A chill swept through the academy. Every head turned upward, eyes wide. Then — the world flickered with a pale blue light.
Everyone system screen appeared, translating his words in glowing runes.
[Translation Active: Unknown Dialect — Sekron Language]
Solvane spread his arms in a T-like stance. His voice carried over the ruins, distorted and heavy like thunder through water.
"We come from a world beyond your stars — the planet Kamora. In every age, we traverse the void to find new worlds, new species… and make new friends."
As the dust cleared, the ship behind him revealed its full shape — vast, spiked, and alien. The hum deepened, resonating like a chorus of metal voices. The surface shimmered with veins of silver-blue light that pulsed in rhythm, like a heartbeat.
The sound it made was haunting — a cross between a sighing storm and a resonant chime, as if the universe itself breathed through it.
"To make new friends," Solvane continued, "we hold a sacred rite — the Tournament of Survival."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Nine of your strongest warriors shall face nine of our kind — the Kamurine. Should you win, your world remains your own. Should you fall… it shall be offered to my lord, Jourdeniem, "The Universes Devourer.""
He raised his hand, fingers forming a sigil — a cosmic twist of geometry. From the air itself, a cube of shifting energy formed — black and violet, covered in rotating rings of alien script.
The ground beneath it warped.
"Behold… the Riotex Polgrinne. In your language — the Cosmic Expropriator. It devours the light of a planet and cages its soul."
The cube pulsed — every breath it took dimmed the world slightly, as if it inhaled existence itself.
Solvane's silver eyes turned to the academy's head, Principal Luewon Rodger.
"You all are weak. Pathetic even. Yet, find your nine warriors. Perhaps among you, a spark still lives."
He gestured to the pale-haired woman beside him two girl look alike but this one hair is long the other one is short . "She will deliver the time and place. The rest… will depend on your will to live."
Both of girls look alike but this one hair is long the other one is short, and the face is still not visible for the distance.
The spiritual pressure that followed crushed the air.
Principal Luewon staggered, falling to his knees, his aura flickering like a candle before a storm.
Teachers shouted, students screamed. Jennifer clenched her fist, golden aura bursting in defiance — but Abraham caught her wrist, eyes fixed on Solvane.
The corner of his mouth curved into a smirk.
"Solvane Thrommer, huh?" he muttered under his breath, voice low and sharp.
"So this is what that bastard meant when he spoke of the 'Lorchen Traxity Apocalypse...'"
The wind howled.
The alien cube pulsed.
And far above the burning academy, the stars seemed to blink — as if something vast was stirring in the void.