The early morning sun bled gold across the academy's high towers, illuminating the training fields with a deceptive calm. Max stood at the edge of the main practice arena, his eyes locked on the horizon. Behind him, the students were already starting their drills—casting minor elemental spells, sparring with dull blades, and preparing for whatever came next. But Max's mind wasn't on practice.
He had leveled up again the previous night.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[Level Up: 13]
[New Skill Unlocked: Elemental Pulse (Lv. 1)]
[Mana Pool Increased]
[Stat Points: +5 Allocated Automatically]
[Hidden Bonus Activated – Blood Resonance: Active]
The system had evolved. It was no longer just a guide or a mysterious artifact-bound entity. It was responding to his intent—twisting and shaping itself around his path. Every battle, every decision, was pulling him deeper into a web of destiny he had barely begun to understand.
Max had spent hours in solitude after his last encounter with Thorn. The mission Thorn assigned him wasn't just a test of strength. It was a setup—an initiation into something much darker.
"Retrieve the sealed relic from the Hollow Vale and ensure it doesn't fall into enemy hands," Thorn had said. "The others don't know about this. Keep it that way."
Max hadn't asked questions. He understood that secrecy was survival.
Now, as the academy buzzed with noise behind him, he was planning. The Hollow Vale was a forbidden zone not far from the academy but covered in wild mana storms and shifting terrain. Officially, it was off-limits. Unofficially, it was where things went to die—or be hidden.
Footsteps approached. Max didn't turn. He already knew who it was.
"You're quiet today," Leo said, leaning casually against the marble railing beside him.
"I have a lot on my mind."
"You always do," Leo chuckled. "But this feels different. You're… tense."
Max didn't reply. He wasn't ready to share the details of Thorn's mission. Leo had proven himself useful—and loyal, to a degree—but there were some things best kept buried.
"I might be heading out tonight," Max said eventually, eyes fixed on the horizon.
Leo's eyes flicked toward him. "Alone?"
Max turned to him. "You want to come?"
Leo raised an eyebrow. "Depends. Will we come back alive?"
Max gave a tight smile. "Only one way to find out."
—
That night, under the pale silver of the twin moons, Max and Leo slipped past the academy gates. Their stealth was aided by the system's cloaking enhancement—something Max had unlocked during his tenth level.
The Hollow Vale lived up to its reputation.
A swirling tempest of blue and green mana storms hovered above the dead trees like angry spirits. The air was thick with unnatural pressure, making it hard to breathe. As they entered the boundary, Max felt the necklace under his shirt grow warmer.
[WARNING: Artifact Proximity Detected]
[Signature Match: 89% — UNKNOWN RELIC]
[System Integrity Holding. Initiating Passive Suppression Protocols.]
Max clenched his jaw. The artifact was reacting to something nearby. Was it the relic Thorn had spoken of?
Leo moved beside him, cautiously. "This place gives me the creeps."
Max scanned the area, his senses heightened. Trees twisted unnaturally. Some had crystal growths along their bark—mana-infected flora. Beneath their feet, the soil pulsed with faint blue veins of energy.
"We won't be here long," Max said.
They ventured deeper.
After half an hour of maneuvering through the mutated forest, they found it. An altar of stone, half-buried under moss and time. At its center hovered a spherical object, encased in layers of crystalline ice and fire—elemental signatures clashing in perfect harmony.
Leo gasped. "Is that the relic?"
Max nodded, though his system said something else.
[Tier-7 Mana Conduit Detected – Sealed State]
[Warning: Seal Maintained by Ancient Language of Binding – Interference May Trigger Hostile Entities]
Before Max could act, a shriek echoed from the woods. Shadows moved—fast.
Four creatures, each the size of a direwolf, emerged. Their bodies were cracked obsidian, glowing with molten veins of red. Mana beasts—aberrants twisted by the Vale's energy.
"Get ready!" Max shouted.
Leo drew two daggers and circled left. Max surged forward, activating Elemental Pulse.
[Skill Activated – Elemental Pulse (Lv. 1)]
[Area Control +10% | Elemental Weakness Detection: Active]
Fire surged from his palms, clashing with the first beast. It reeled, screeching as flames seared its corrupted flesh.
Leo danced between two others, slashing and dodging with precision, but one caught his shoulder.
"Leo!" Max shouted, pulling up a wall of earth to separate the combatants.
The system blared.
[Health Drop Detected: Ally - Leo Granger]
[Emergency Boost Option Available: Channel Mana to Ally?]
[Y/N]
He hesitated—but chose Y.
A bolt of green energy surged from Max's hand to Leo, sealing his wound mid-battle.
"What the hell?!" Leo shouted, astonished, but kept fighting.
Minutes passed like hours. Sweat poured from Max's brow. His mana reserves dipped below half.
Finally, the last beast collapsed in a steaming heap.
They stood in silence, breathing heavily, the relic still pulsing ominously in the center.
"You knew they'd be here," Leo said, tone unreadable.
"I suspected," Max replied.
Leo wiped blood from his chin. "You're not telling me everything, Max. That healing? That control? You're not just a green-talent kid from nowhere."
Max didn't respond.
Instead, he stepped forward, placing his hand on the relic.
[Sealed Mana Conduit Accessed]
[Seal Responding to Host's Artifact Resonance…]
[Decryption Initiated… 3%... 7%... 11%...]
The necklace pulsed violently. The relic shimmered.
And the sky cracked open with a deafening roar.
—
They barely made it back to the academy.
Neither of them spoke on the return trip. Leo walked behind Max, a thousand questions in his eyes, but he said nothing. For now.
Max returned to his dormitory alone.
He collapsed on his bed, eyes wide open.
[Mission Complete: "Shadows of the Vale"]
[EXP Gained: +12,000]
[Level Up: 14]
[New Skill Unlocked: Mana Sculptor (Lv. 1)]
[Artifact Sync Progress: 14%]
His phone buzzed.
A message from Thorn.
"Good. You survived. Report to me at dawn."
Max closed his eyes.
The web was tightening. Thorn had plans. The system had plans. Even Leo had his own motives.
But Max had something no one else did.
Control.
And he was done playing nice.