Noah didn't know how many levels of fate lay above the green lights.
But he was certain of one thing—green wasn't the limit.
He was only twenty. A year in this forsaken mine hadn't broken him. He could afford to wait... and watch.
Something in his gut told him that Demon Star Academy wasn't the sanctuary it pretended to be. If anything, it felt like a gilded cage—or worse, a slaughterhouse with a pretty gate.
Unless he had absolutely no choice, he wouldn't join them. Not without a fight.
Yet no matter how far he looked through the misty lens of the Stone Liquid, he couldn't find anything beyond green.
No blues. No golds. No divine radiance. Just green... and the endless gray.
Noah sighed. Frustration simmered beneath his calm, but he knew better than to let it rise.
The liquid's effect had a time limit, and so did his vision. Trapped in the depths of the Demon Star Cavern, all he could do was observe what little space he had access to.
The cavern was massive, yes—but not infinite. And chances greater than green-level were rare. He had used the Stone Liquid twelve times, once per month, and had never seen anything higher.
Then—
"BOOM!"
A deafening roar shook the cavern.
Noah's vision, still enhanced by the last flickers of the Stone Liquid, caught a monstrous blaze outside the cave—a Fire Dragon, vast and crimson, roaring across the horizon. It bared its claws, flames trailing behind it like a storm, and slammed into the outer barriers of the cavern.
"Who dares trespass into the treasure lands of Demon Star?"
A thunderous voice echoed, old and commanding. And then came the tide.
Countless black insects burst from the ground like a living net, forming a writhing wall against the dragon's approach.
"BOOM!"
The Fire Dragon didn't stop. Its eyes burned with golden fury as it tore through the swarm, its massive tail sweeping down with bone-crushing force.
It struck the outer edge of the cavern.
The mountain groaned.
Earth shattered.
Dust and demonic fiend energy swirled like a hurricane. The very ground threatened to collapse, and shrill screams echoed from within the cave as miners scrambled for shelter.
"Kael Dragos! You dare?!"
A black-robed old man flew into the air, white beard billowing like a banner in a storm. His aura flared as he launched himself into the sky to meet the attack.
"BZZZZZT!"
Inside the cave, ancient symbols lit up. A barrier shimmered into place—the Thickstone Array.
It wasn't powerful, but it was practical.
The Demon Star Cavern's fiendish energy eroded most magical defenses. Setting up a grand formation here was both costly and temporary. That's why Demon Star Academy stationed an Awakened wizard to guard the mine instead of relying on large-scale enchantments.
Still, to prevent full cave collapse, this small stabilizing array was essential.
But Noah's attention was no longer on the battle or the magic.
His eyes burned with purpose.
He was staring at the depths of the cave—where something pulsed.
A new light.
It flickered in the darkness—dark green, with a faint blue glint threading through it. The first time he had seen anything like it. It shimmered in the farthest tunnel, far beyond the reach of miners. Beyond the safe zones.
"BOOM!"
The Stone Liquid's effect ended.
The light vanished.
Darkness returned.
Screams and panic echoed around him. Miners scattered like frightened rats. But Noah stood still, his heartbeat calm... steady.
He had made his decision.
Without hesitation, he dragged Alex's body into the shadows and concealed it with a layer of rubble and dust. Then he gathered the thirty Demon Star Stones—his ticket out.
One hand clutched the small vial of Erosion Spirit Ash—his last resort.
And then, cloak pulled tight around his form, he slipped into the shadows and ran—toward the depths of the cave.
Toward the light.
Toward fate.
The deepest regions of the Demon Star Cavern were toxic—soaked in raw fiend energy. Only Awakened-tier wizards could survive down there for long. Even the academy's wardens rarely ventured that deep.
Noah moved with practiced caution—his pace steady, measured, not a sound escaping his footsteps.
The Stone Cave was vast, and as long as one stayed alert, it was easy to avoid attention. The miners had already staked out their own territories, each man focused on survival, on gathering enough Demon Star Stones to stay alive another day.
Above, chaos still reigned.
The battle between the Fire Dragon and the academy's guardians raged in the skies, their clashing energies shaking the mountain, but no one below dared look up. The distraction worked in Noah's favor—no one noticed as he slipped deeper into the abyss.
But as he descended, the air grew heavier... darker.
The deeper he went, the thicker the demonic fiend energy became—oppressive and suffocating, like a leaden cloud pressing down on his chest. Each breath felt like inhaling fire. Each step sent waves of agony through his body.
His organs throbbed with heat—boiling from the inside, as though they were melting in acid.
It was unbearable.
And yet he endured.
He clenched his teeth until his gums bled, pressing forward through the cloud of darkness. The black mist filled every corner of his vision, turning the world into a void.
Most wouldn't dare come this far. Most wouldn't survive even a few breaths.
Noah was already beyond his limit.
Just as he felt his body would collapse into mist, he saw it.
"There it is…"
Beyond the haze of fiendish energy, he glimpsed a flicker of hope.
A cracked wall loomed ahead, shrouded in swirling dust and mist. Within the fracture—a gap barely wide enough for a man—lay a crystal-clear skeleton, resting in eternal stillness.
Its right hand still clutched something.
A token, palm-sized and glowing faintly through the shadows.
It was cyan in color, etched with delicate patterns resembling green leaves and curling vines. It shimmered with a soft mana pulse, but a veil of gray mist surrounded it—muting its light, binding it in silence.
This was the opportunity. The one the Stone Liquid had shown him.
Noah's blind eyes couldn't see its glow, but his senses burned with its presence. Mana—pure and ancient—radiated from it.
He stepped forward to claim it.
"PUFF!"
A stab of pain ripped through him. His body convulsed, and a hot rush of blood burst from his lips.
His organs were failing. His insides were dissolving.
But to retreat now would mean failure—worse, it would mean regret.
With a grunt of defiance, Noah summoned the last of his magic. The Spirit-Severing Ring lashed at his meridians like blades, but he bore it. He gathered what energy he had left to shield his failing organs and lunged forward.
His hand closed around the token.
The moment he touched it, a surge of power rushed through his body.
No time to savor it—he spun on his heel and bolted back, the gray mist shrieking around him.
"PUFF!"
Blood erupted from his mouth again, coating his chin and chest. His abdomen pulsed with pain—his insides were tearing apart.
The demonic fiend energy had already invaded his body, sinking into every vein and muscle.
If he didn't receive treatment—or find a way to remove the Spirit-Severing Ring—he would die.
And yet...
His eyes burned.
In the pitch-dark cave, as his body trembled and his life bled out of him, his gaze gleamed with fire.
He had the token.
He had taken the chance.
And even in the face of death, his spirit burned brighter than ever.
"BOOM!"
The earth trembled once again as scorching heat surged from beyond the depths of the Demon Star Stone Cave. A deafening Dragon's roar split the skies, echoing across the horizon like thunder heralding a calamity.
Outside, chaos reigned.
The skies were lit in crimson and gold, not from the sun—but from fire.
A colossal Fire Dragon soared above, its massive body coiled like a living tempest. Its golden eyes burned with fury, and every beat of its wings fanned flames powerful enough to melt iron and vaporize stone. The heat rolling off it was suffocating—an inferno given form.
The Demon Star Academy had provoked a true monster.
The Fire Dragon raged across the battlefield like a force of nature, its temperature so intense it seemed to boil the very air. Mountains trembled under its shadow. Seas would have dried beneath its breath.
Even the Awakened Wizards, those tasked with protecting the academy, were helpless. Their spells, their barriers—everything—was torn apart as they were forced back, step by agonizing step.
"Enough, Kael Dragos!"
One of the Awakened Wizards, his robes torn and face scorched, shouted in fury as he fought to hold the line. His voice cracked with exhaustion.
"Will you not retreat? Do you truly believe the Demon Star Academy is made of mud? Dare to push further, and you'll face our Dean's wrath!"
But the Dragon only growled.
Upon its head stood an old man—his spine straight, his expression colder than ice. His flowing sleeves fluttered like mist in the infernal winds. He radiated a transcendent aura, like someone who walked between life and myth.
His voice was deathly calm.
"Wrath? After today—" he said, his words slicing through the chaos,
"—there will be no more Demon Star Academy left in this world."
The Wizard's heart sank.
Panic flashed across his face. Without hesitation, he formed intricate hand seals and began chanting in a forgotten tongue. Light shimmered on his right palm as an ancient Imprint bloomed—a green bird, wings outstretched in a cry for aid.
He sent the signal high into the heavens.
But the sky gave no answer.
Seconds passed. Then a minute. Still nothing.
His face drained of color.
No one was coming.
In desperation, he shifted tactics. His finger drew a line in the air, and a second Imprint appeared—this one dark, square-shaped, surrounded by circling black bats, screeching as they swarmed around the magical sigil.
"SCREEECH!"
The wail echoed across the sky, shrill and piercing, as if calling something from the shadows...