Chapter 16: Bounty Hunters In The Dorm

Damien stepped further into the hall, then held up a small leather pouch. The coins inside jingled lightly. "Let me make this easy." He said, raising his voice. "This pouch here? Holds enough to buy at least two F-rank spell formations." He opened it and pulled out a single gold coin, letting it gleam under the dim hallway lantern. Gasps rippled through the Stone-tier students. Damien turned slowly, showing the coin to every face. "Noah here," he said, gesturing to Noah with the coin, "has something I want." "A B-rank spell token. Something none of you can use." Murmurs passed through the students. "You don’t have the necessary attributes to use it for yourselves. You don’t have the necessary backing to even sell it. You’d lose it to someone stronger the second you tried to claim anything from the library." He tossed the gold coin in the air, and caught it again with a satisfying clink. "But this?" he said, shaking the pouch, "this you can use." He pointed at Noah. "Whoever takes that token from him and brings it to me gets the pouch of money. All of it. Right here, right now." The hallway fell into stunned silence. Noah’s eyes scanned the students, all guys in worn uniforms. All kids who have been consigned to the bottom of the pyramid. And here it was, an opportunity for power, dangling in front of their faces. Damien smiled wider. "You know the rules," he said smoothly. "Fighting among students is allowed. Just don’t kill him." He lowered the pouch to his side. "You’ve got everything to gain," he said. "And nothing to lose." The students turned. Slowly. One by one. Their eyes locked on Noah. Damien chuckled. "Go on," he said. "Attack him." The first footstep forward was all it took. The crowd surged. Noah’s eyes narrowed, instantly calculating what he needed to do, then he moved. He spun on his heel and dove back into his room, slamming the door shut behind him. Bang! The first body hit the wood just as he threw the lock, the old bolt rattling in place. The door groaned, the hinges creaking under the sudden pressure. Noah crossed the room in two steps and dropped to his knees, flipping open the trunk beside his bed. His hand shot through the contents, scrolls, ink, spare uniform, until his fingers closed around cold metal. The B-rank spell token. He yanked it free and shoved it into his pocket, heart thudding once in his chest. ’I can’t lose this.’ It wasn’t pride. It wasn’t ego. It was survival. The token was his only guaranteed path to real power, and without it, he’d be just another number in Stone Tier. No resources, no standing, no future. If he failed, he could always reveal his true potential, but doing that would destroy all his plans to show the world that just because he wasn’t privileged, he didn’t belong at the bottom. A crack split through the air. The door shuddered violently as someone kicked it, splinters falling from the frame. Noah turned, rising to his feet, his hand outstretched. Another crash... And the door exploded inward. Three students stumbled through, half-shoved by the force of those behind them. Noah’s hand glowed. Roar. The invisible force blasted from his palm, not a sound but a presence, a wave of pressure that slammed into the first wave of attackers. They staggered, one falling to his knees, another slamming into the cracked wall with a groan. The third dropped his weapon, just a training rod, but fumbled back with wide eyes. Noah stepped forward. The broken door hung crooked on one hinge, splintered wood framing the dark hallway beyond. He could see more students waiting, uncertain now, pausing just beyond the doorway. He didn’t move from the threshold. This door, thin and narrow, was now his advantage. If they wanted him, they’d have to come in one at a time. And that meant... he could fight. He set his feet, his hands clenched into fists in front of him. "Come on." He muttered. The first student lunged through the broken doorway, swinging a short iron rod at Noah’s shoulder. Noah ducked low and drove his fist into the boy’s ribs. The impact cracked through the air, sending the student sprawling into the hallway with a gasp. Another immediately took his place. Noah stepped forward, raising his hand. Roar surged from his palm again, a focused blast that struck the next attacker full in the chest. He crumpled with a scream, rolling out of the way as the third came in swinging. "Just give us the token!" The guy shouted, his eyes desperate. Noah caught his wrist, twisted, and slammed him into the doorframe. He groaned and dropped his weapon. More footsteps. More students. They were crowding around the door, pushing to get inside one by one. His arms burned. His breath came faster. But he didn’t stop. He punched. He kicked. He used Roar in short, brutal bursts to disorient and knock them back. The skill wasn’t meant to maim, just to disorient and disrupt. And used right, it left them dazed long enough for him to strike. A boy tackled him halfway through the doorframe. Noah elbowed him hard in the jaw and threw him back outside. "You don’t have to do this." Noah said coldly, eyes flicking across the shifting crowd. A student with a cracked lip shouted back, "It’s not personal! We need the coin!" "This is our chance!" Another said. "You’re just one person!" Noah’s fist caught the speaker in the chest, sending him reeling. But for every one that fell back, another rushed in. Some with skills, some with nothing but desperation in their eyes. The pressure was constant, like waves breaking against him, relentless and wearing him down. They wanted to justify it. But their eyes were full of hunger. Then a voice rose above the chaos. "Move!" The crowd parted at once, students stepping aside with eager urgency. A tall boy in worn robes strode forward, eyes locked on Noah. His hand crackled faintly with light. His gaze was hard, unshaking. "I’ve got a F-rank Subjugation Skill." He said calmly. He pointed his hand at Noah. "You’ve got nowhere to run."