Chapter 30: The Phantom and the Soap Opera

"FLAMING SPEAR! FLAMING SPEAR! FLAMING SPEAR!"

The stadium shook with the deafening chant.

Tens of thousands of students and citizens stomped their feet, completely abandoning their former idol to worship the newly crowned King of the Academy.

Aegon stood in the center of the shattered ring, his silver spear resting on his shoulder, the blood-red flames fully retracted.

He had done it.

But before Headmaster Vane could even step up to the podium to officially present the award, the stadium’s magical lighting suddenly flickered and died.

WHOOOP! WHOOOP! WHOOOP!

A blaring, ear-piercing crimson siren erupted from every speaker in Bastion Seven. The massive holographic screens above the arena turned blood-red, flashing a single, terrifying word:

[LOCKDOWN INITIATED]

"Attention all personnel and citizens!" Headmaster Vane’s voice boomed, completely stripped of its usual calm demeanor.

"Remain in your seats! Academy Security, secure all exits immediately! This is a Code Red!"

Up in the VIP box, the political posturing vanished instantly.

Lord Hennesy, Lady Logcheville, Lord Tokks, and Seraphina Vance all stood up, their faces pale.

As leaders of the Great Houses and Guilds, they knew exactly what a ’Code Red’ meant in the Academy.

"The Reliquary," Seraphina whispered, her eyes widening.

The VIPs did not wait for an escort. They surged out of the box, rushing down the private corridors to meet the Headmaster.

Ten minutes later, deep in the underground cellar, the most powerful figures in the city stood paralyzed in front of the breached vault.

Instructor Graves’s headless body lay in a pool of dark blood. The marble pedestal in the center of the room was empty. The Aegis Core was gone.

"How?" Headmaster Vane breathed, staring at the corpse.

"Graves was a veteran Vanguard. Who could do this to him?"

Lord Tokks knelt next to the body, examining the severed neck.

"There is no mana residue," Tokks said grimly, his scarred face tight with disbelief.

"No burn marks. No frost. It is a perfectly smooth cut. Whoever did this compressed the very space around the blade. It was an instant, unavoidable execution."

"Look at the wall," Lady Logcheville commanded, her crimson eyes narrowed.

The group looked up. Carved deep into the concrete wall directly above the empty pedestal, deliberately painted with Graves’s own blood, was a massive skull wearing a spiked insignia.

Beneath it, a chilling message was written: Death shall befall those who deny Destiny.

"The Church of the Eternal Eclipse," Lord Hennesy spat, his fists clenching in fury.

"Graves must have caught them in the act, and they slaughtered him."

It was a perfectly placed, incredibly cliché message.

It instantly threw the city’s greatest minds off guard, cementing their preconceived notions and entirely diverting their attention away from the students above.

"Shut down the entire Academy," Vane ordered, his voice trembling. "No one leaves until the investigation is finished!"

---

Meanwhile, in the Vanguard Medical Ward, the atmosphere was completely different.

The room was peaceful. Draven lay comfortably on the crisp white hospital bed, his eyes closed, the steady rhythm of his breathing making it look like he had been asleep for hours.

Estella sat in the chair beside him, humming a soft tune as she carefully peeled a red apple with a small knife.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

The heavy wooden door opened. Aegon Logcheville walked in.

He was alone. His uniform was torn, his face was covered in soot and sweat, but the oppressive, heavy burden that had weighed down his shoulders for years was completely gone.

Draven opened his eyes, casually sitting up against the pillows.

"Congratulations on the victory against Neville," Draven said, his voice calm.

Aegon blinked in surprise. He closed the door behind him. "How do you know I won? You were sleeping."

Draven smirked.

"If someone saw your face right now, they would have to be blind not to recognize your victory. You are grinning like you just won the world. Get off your high horse and sit down. Tell me what happened."

Aegon chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. He pulled up a chair and sat down with a heavy, exhausted sigh.

"It was chaos," Aegon began.

"Right after I made him yield, the sirens went off. The Academy is in total lockdown. The Instructors are keeping the information a secret from the public, but from what I heard, someone deliberately tried to enter the underground vault and died."

Aegon leaned forward.

"That is the story they are spreading to manage public order. Just a failed break-in."

Draven rested his chin on his hand. He kept his face perfectly neutral, but internally, he was highly amused.

’Whether it be Earth or this world, great leaders just know how to manage people with limited information,’ Draven thought.

’You cannot even claim it is false information, because Graves technically did try to enter the vault and die. Brilliant spin.’

"But think about it, Commander," Aegon continued, his crimson eyes shining with genuine awe.

"Who has the balls to do something like this right under the nose of the Academy? The Headmaster, the Guild Leaders, the Great Houses, they were all here! To even attempt a heist right now is insane."

Aegon shook his head in disbelief.

"The important question is, how did they even bypass the security cameras? They must have had some insane concealing spells or absolute top-tier artifacts on them. It’s absolutely brilliant, even if they are the enemy."

Listening to Aegon fanboy over the mysterious thief, Draven slowly turned his head.

He looked at Estella. Estella paused her apple peeling and looked back at him.

A silent, non-verbal communication passed between them. A shared, incredibly smug secret.

Aegon noticed the look. He frowned, glancing between the two of them.

"What?" Aegon asked defensively. "Why are you two smirking like that? Tell me!"

Draven sighed, patting Aegon on the shoulder.

"You sound like a massive admirer of this thief, buddy. Do not go around saying these things in public, yeah? You will be in deep trouble with the Instructors."

Aegon grumbled, crossing his arms.

"More importantly," Draven shifted the subject smoothly.

"What about Reina? She was transferred to the next Medical Ward after your match. Did you meet her?"

Aegon blinked, suddenly looking entirely lost.

"No. I just came straight here to report the situation to you."

Estella dropped her apple slice onto the plate. She looked at Aegon with pure, unfiltered disappointment.

"What an idiot!" Estella sighed, shaking her head.

"You should have gone and asked for her first, you dummy."

Estella tapped the silver spatial ring on her finger.

With a soft flash of light, she pulled out a beautiful, vibrant bouquet of glowing blue Academy lilies. She shoved them forcefully into Aegon’s chest.

"Here, take this, you noob!" Estella scolded him, her violet eyes narrowing.

"Give it to her as a fast recovery gift. Girls like flowers, FYI."

Aegon’s face instantly turned bright red. He awkwardly gripped the bouquet, suddenly looking far more terrified than he had when he was fighting Neville.

"Right. Flowers. Yes. Thank you, Estella," Aegon stammered. He practically tripped over his own boots as he rushed out of the room, heading straight for the neighboring ward.

The door clicked shut.

The room was quiet for exactly three seconds.

Draven looked at Estella. He threw the blanket off his legs and grabbed his boots.

"Come on," Draven said, a rare, genuine grin breaking across his face. "I cannot miss this soap opera."

"I am right behind you!" Estella giggled, leaving the apples behind as they snuck out of the room to spy on the Flaming Hero.