Chapter 269 - 269: Just as planned!

Words : 1141 Updated : Sep 29th, 2025

"Fifty seconds remaining!" Eric's voice boomed across the dense forest, amplified by a floating green crystal hovering in front of him. The device projected his command to every corner of the forest, its echo lingering in the air like a ticking clock. He stood tall before a thick obsidian gate, arms crossed, the shadows of towering trees dancing behind him. Before him gathered several students, each clutching glowing magical cores—proof of their conquest. They had finished the hunt and now awaited the stragglers. The first to emerge had been Drey, his eyes glinting with pride. Then came Dave, Dante, Charlotte, Selene, Greg, Scarlet, Lyra… one by one, they arrived, some breathless, others beaming. Eric kept a strict watch, jotting down arrival times with the precision of a ticking metronome. Some returned within five minutes of entering the forest, their bodies sweaty but confident. Others stumbled in late, mud-caked boots dragging across the forest floor. Eric's gaze remained sharp, his mind recording every detail like an unforgiving ledger. Vince emerged next, chest heaving with exhaustion, each breath rasping through parted lips. He dragged himself toward the others, his hands cradling ten glowing magical cores as if they were priceless gems. "Where is Grey?" Scarlet asked, her voice hushed as her eyes scanned the thinning treeline. "I don't know," Greg replied, giving a half-shrug. "I mean, he should have been done by now. What's keeping him?" Raze asked, spinning in a slow circle, scanning the shadows. There was no sign of the one person who should've been first. "Who knows? Maybe he got lost." Jay chuckled, the sound awkward in the tense atmosphere. "Time's up! Wherever you are, head back now! You've got half a minute!" Eric's voice rang out again, the urgency in his tone rising. Just then, a thunderous crash split the air. The earth trembled. Dust exploded outward. Trees shattered like splinters. And from the haze, Grey landed with a boom, crouched like a predator just released from its cage. The ground cracked beneath him as he stood upright, his presence commanding instant silence. In his hands shimmered thirty magical cores, glowing with pulsing energy. He extended them toward a stunned Eric, whose mouth twitched in disbelief. "W–Wait... thirty magical cores?!" Eric sputtered, eyes wide. "I said hunt ten beasts! TEN!" Grey's lips curved into a devil-may-care smirk. "Yeah, I know. I hunted thirty on purpose. You can sell the extras for a few coins. Consider it my charity to you." The audacity made Eric's fist clench. His jaw tightened. The wind around him stirred more violently. "How dare you?! How dare you talk to me like that after stealing those cores?" he snarled, a thick vein bulging at his temple. "Steal?" Grey repeated, raising an eyebrow as though genuinely confused. "Who said I stole them? I hunted them. Fair and square." "You expect me to believe you took down thirty hop bunnies, harvested their cores, in fifteen minutes?!" Eric's voice cracked with disbelief. "That's absurd!" Grey leaned in, flashing his pearly whites. "Actually… I did it in one minute." Gasps swept through the crowd. "Is Grey exaggerating?" Arthur whispered, glancing down at his own haul—seven magical cores. His confidence wavered. "I mean... I don't even know anymore," Raze added, stunned. "Should we really be surprised?" Vanica asked, panting from the run back. Ten magical cores glowed in her palms. Her gaze shifted to Jay, who quickly turned away, his cheeks flushed red. 'Why did Jay help me? I thought he hated peasants…' Vanica's mind drifted to the moment Jay had appeared beside her, handed her ten cores without a word, then vanished into the forest like a phantom. "I guess we shouldn't be surprised. It's Grey we're talking about," Scarlet said, her voice tinged with admiration and exasperation. "You hunted thirty in one minute?!" Eric bellowed. "You take me for a fool?!" Grey took a slow step back, shaking his head. "No… I don't take you for a fool." His eyes locked with Eric's. Sёarch* The Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I think you are one." A collective gasp rippled through the crowd. "What?!" Eric roared, the wind whipping violently around him. Blades of air materialized in a ring, their edges glinting menacingly as they pointed at Grey. "Damn it," Raze muttered, swallowing hard. "What has Grey gone and done now?" 'Perfect,' Dave thought, grinning to himself. 'If I can't take revenge, then Instructor Eric will do it for me.' "Do you think we should help Grey? What if this escalates?" Gordon asked, his five magical cores rattling against each other from the swirling wind. "If he needs help, I won't hesitate to jump in," Vince said, stepping forward. "Says the weakest among us," Greg scoffed. "I will—" Vince began, but his words were cut short. A surge of electric power split the air. Grey's hands crackled with lightning, brilliant arcs dancing along his skin. His eyes glowed an electric blue, like twin stars born from thunderclouds. "You sure you want to threaten me?" he asked, a sly grin spreading across his face. "You clearly need to be taught a lesson!" Eric snapped. He flicked his fingers—twenty wind blades screamed through the air like deadly banshees. 'Perfect,' Grey thought again, swirling his hands. A vortex of spinning air materialized in front of him, spiraling with energy. It surged forward, colliding with the wind blades and scattering them like leaves in a storm. One, however, slipped through—striking his shoulder. Blood splattered. Grey skidded back, boots dragging a groove in the earth, but his grin didn't fade. "Instructor Eric!" Charlotte shouted, stepping forward, her tone stern. "Attacking a student like that—it's reckless!" "She's right!" Lyra added. "If he dies, how will you explain it to the academies?" Eric paused, breathing heavily. The wind settled, but his glare didn't. "For lying to an instructor, stealing magical cores, threatening a superior, insulting one, and attempting an attack… I declare your second assessment failed. "You're barred from the third as punishment," Eric finished, turning away with a scowl. Grey stood still, blood trickling down his arm, that same smirk never leaving his lips. "Perfect," he whispered. "Just as planned." ____ {A/N} I know most of you must be thinking of Grey as rash and stupid, but trust me, he knows better than attacking an instructor. This is all in a way for him not to participate in the tournament. Also, don't think that because he isn't participating in the tournament, it won't be fun... Trust this author. If you skip the tournament arc, you are gonna miss a lot????

Chapter 269 - 269: Just as planned!

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