Chương 29: The Door Beneath the Academy

The bell rang at noon. Not the academy bell. A deeper sound. One that seemed to come from beneath the ground. Leo stopped halfway across the courtyard. So did everyone else. For three seconds, the academy became unnaturally quiet. Then— BOOOOOOM. The sound rolled through the stone beneath their feet. Several students stumbled. Windows rattled. A flock of birds erupted from the academy towers.

"What was that?"

"Was it an earthquake?"

"Did something explode?" Leo said nothing. His eyes lowered. The vibration had not come from the surface. It had traveled upward. From below. Amon approached from behind, looking toward the central tower.

"Tell me you felt that."

"I did."

"Any idea what it was?"

"No." That answer was honest. Leo could feel a strange pressure lingering beneath the ground, but it was unlike ordinary mana. It was too old. Too dense. And, more importantly— It had stopped. As if whatever had caused the sound had awakened for only a moment. Then gone silent again. Alice joined them. Her expression was unusually serious.

"The professors are gathering." Masha looked toward the main building.

"Do you think it's dangerous?" Leo watched the tower.

"No." Alice frowned. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"You don't sound convinced."

"I said I don't think it's dangerous."

"That isn't the same thing." Leo glanced at her. She was right. He had learned long ago that danger rarely announced itself honestly. Before he could answer, a voice echoed across the courtyard.

"ALL STUDENTS TO THE EASTERN TRAINING HALL!" The command came from Professor Gareth. There was no panic in his voice. That was what concerned Leo. Gareth never raised his voice unless he wanted to make sure everyone heard him. This time, he sounded like he was hiding something. The eastern training hall was packed within minutes. Students filled the stone benches. Professors stood along the walls. No one was allowed near the center. Gareth entered last. He carried a black wooden box. Leo immediately noticed it.

The box had no lock. No handle. Only a single silver symbol carved into its surface. A circle surrounded by three vertical lines. Leo had never seen it before. But the moment he looked at it— something inside him reacted. Not pain. Recognition. His eyes narrowed. Where have I seen that symbol? He searched his memories. Nothing. Gareth placed the box on the table.

"An underground chamber was discovered beneath the academy this morning." Whispers spread through the hall.

"It was not on any of the academy's original architectural records." The room became quieter. Gareth continued.

"The chamber is sealed." A student raised his hand.

"Professor, by what?" Gareth looked at him.

"That is the problem." He opened the box. Inside was a fragment of black stone. It was no larger than a coin. Yet the moment it was exposed, the mana in the room shifted. Leo felt it immediately. The air became heavier. Amon swallowed.

"What… is that?" Gareth did not answer. Instead, he looked directly at the professors.

"We found twelve of these surrounding the entrance." Leo's eyes remained fixed on the fragment. The stone wasn't absorbing mana. It was— rejecting it. Every trace of mana that touched its surface disappeared. Not absorbed. Erased. That was impossible. At least according to everything Leo had learned in this world. Gareth closed the box.

"We are temporarily suspending all training beneath the third underground level." A student protested.

"But why?"

"Because we don't know what's down there." The professor's gaze hardened.

"And until we do, nobody goes looking." Leo almost smiled. That was usually when people started looking. That evening, the academy was quieter than usual. Leo sat alone on the roof of the eastern dormitory. The city stretched beneath him. Thousands of lights. Hundreds of towers. A world that appeared peaceful from a distance. He rolled the small black fragment between his fingers. He had not taken it from the academy. He had simply memorized its shape. Its texture. Its reaction.

And most importantly— the sensation it had awakened inside him. Leo closed his eyes. The world disappeared. He focused inward. The power he had been carefully cultivating moved through his body. Slowly. Precisely. He guided it through the pathways he had constructed over the past months. The stolen mana had increased his reserves. But quantity was no longer the problem. Control was. He opened his eyes.

"That stone…" His voice was barely audible.

"It wasn't made to contain power." He looked toward the academy.

"It was made to keep something out." A cold wind crossed the roof. Leo remained still. Then he noticed something. A faint red glow beneath the academy. Only for an instant. His expression changed. The glow disappeared. He stood. For the first time that day, he smiled. Not because he was excited. Because he had finally found something worth investigating. Behind him, footsteps approached. Leo turned. Alice stood near the stairway.

"You disappeared after dinner."

"I wanted some air." She studied him.

"You've been acting strange lately." Leo raised an eyebrow.

"Strange?"

"You look like someone who knows something." For a moment, neither spoke. Then Leo smiled naturally.

"You're imagining things." Alice didn't smile back.

"I hope I am." She turned and walked away. Leo watched her leave. Then he looked toward the academy once more. The underground chamber had nothing to do with the field trip. Nothing to do with the masked criminal. Nothing to do with the criminals in the forest. At least— he hoped it didn't. Because if those events were connected… then someone had been moving pieces across the board long before he noticed the game. Leo looked toward the dark horizon. And somewhere beneath the academy— something knocked. Once. Knock.

Leo's smile disappeared. A second knock followed. Knock. Then silence. He stood alone beneath the night sky. For the first time since arriving in this world, Leo wondered whether he was truly the one investigating the mystery. Or whether— the mystery had already noticed him. End of Chapter 29.