Death's Embrace

The sudden explosion sounds came from one part of the water sphere. It was the cave where the Spectral wisps could not enter!

Instructor Ethan, Lady Zephyra, and everyone else in the room quickly focused on the images but couldn't help but wonder what was going on inside there.

Sol had entered that place some time ago, and he had yet to leave the cave. They knew if Sol died, Aetheria would not be peaceful as long as the Ark family existed.

They knew the ones to blame were them since they were the ones handling and overseeing the event, so it was only natural that the people would demand retribution.

Swoosh!

Sol's body shot out from the cave like a rag dull, and it only stopped when it hit a wall some distance away from the cave entrance.

"Sol?" Instructor Ethan was shaken by what he saw.

His performance against Katherine made him consider Sol was a sly youth who had been hiding his strength under the pretense of being sick, but deep down he had begun respecting the youth. He had acknowledged Sol as one of the strongest participants of the first test Sol, he wondered what could toss Sol around this badly in a mere goblin cave.

What was more stunning was the bloody open wound on Sol's chest. A hole was drilled into his robes, but he couldn't make sense of anything else, especially since Sol was drenched in blood.

This was not an injury a goblin could inflict!

What the hell happened inside that cave?

What did Sol meet?

What the hell was going on with the testing area?

A day was yet to pass, but they had already recorded a staggering number of deaths. While they were expecting more than half of the class to lose their lives in this test, the way things were going, it was clear no one would be left alive by the end of the seven-day test.

Right now, Instructor Ethan was beginning to believe Lady Zephyra's words. Something they were completely unaware of was going on, and external forces had a hand in it.

The question remained the same.

Who the hell would dare fuck with the alpha families of Aetheria?

What was their ultimate goal and purpose?

If a new beast race was trying to replace an alpha race, they would target one of the four families, going after all four was simply unheard of.

"We need to inform the elders and put an end to this test," Instructor Ethan said decisively.

His words invited some strange looks from everyone in the room since no one had ever made such a comment before.

"End the test?" Lady Zephyra asked with a look of shock. "The family leaders will never agree to this, and I do not agree to this!"

"This test has been a long-lasting tradition of the alpha families of Aetheria!" Lady Zephyra argued. "No one is allowed to interfere with it!"

However, Instructor Ethan didn't seem to care about her words, even though she was of a higher ranking in the academy.

"Old Hag, you said it yourself, there is an outside force interfering with the test," Instructor Ethan hissed with blood-red eyes. "The lives of the heirs are at risk here, so your opinion doesn't matter" 

Instructor Ethan began walking towards the exit as he continued speaking.

"I'll speak to Lord Tepese about this. I'm certain he will be more sensible than a senile old hag.." 

Bam!

The door was slammed as he left the room, and Lady Zephyra was left fuming in rage. If it wasn't because of Instructor Ethan's identity as the grandson of a previous vampire lord, she would have killed him already. But she was certain if she did it now, not even the entire witch coven would be able to save her from the calamity that would befall her.

...… Meanwhile .......

Blegh!

Sol spat out a mouthful of blood and clutched his bleeding stomach. He was extremely pale, and his eyes already had dark circles, while his body kept twitching occasionally.

At the edge of the cave was Lukas, who stood with his murderous gaze pinned on Sol. All he needed now to kill Sol was one final attack, yet he couldn't move into the view of the Spectral wisps. He knew doing that would ruin their plans and attract unwanted attention.

Sol on the other hand noticed his hesitation and remembered what he said about spectral wisps not being able to enter the cave, so no one could save him. He wasn't sure what the Spectral wisps were, but he understood Lukas wouldn't step outside or do anything to jeopardize his plan.

With his bloody hand, Sol reached within his robes and pulled out the pendant he had taken. He raised his hand with the pendant dangling and let Lukas watch it with a furious look on his face, while a mocking smile bloomed on his pale face.

"I win this time…." Sol hissed before struggling to his feet and staggering into the forest.

While he wanted to stay and taunt Lukas more, he knew the goblin army would soon return, so it wasn't wise to stay here any longer.

He gritted his teeth while he walked forward. The ark family were humans with demonic blood running in their veins, which granted them reasonable regenerative capabilities, that's why he was able to recover from the head injury he got from Instructor Dorothy quite fast, but with a deep injury like this, Sol knew it would take some days or more, especially since there was no one to stitch it up which would help quicken the process.

Sol chose to follow a route different from where he came from since he knew the goblins would come from there. He kept moving and kept in mind that he was leaving behind a trail of blood that would be used to track him down. His bleeding wound was also a beacon to all beasts and creatures with a good sense of smell in the forest.

Even with Lukas trapped in the cave, Sol felt the death was closer to him than ever before.