Chapter 325: A Shared Goal
Several months had passed since Kai became the Red Prince.
A new normal had settled over Eventide Academy.
But little change for the Ambrosia Pact other than having a warm and comfortable bed to go back to after each tiring day. The weekly quota of legal mana ores, a privilege from Kai being a Red Prince, became the foundation for the group.
Kai distributed them with precise intent, prioritizing having all members break through.
Becoming an Aspirant Supernal is paramount for them.
Bree was the first one to be allocated half of Kai’s weekly quota portion—in addition to her own. She reached the Aspirant Supernal rank in the first month—naturally becoming the second Aspirant Supernal of the group.
Her absorption efficiency was surprisingly good despite not having a high-rated Patron God.
But then again, a fog of mystery still surrounded her, so the others weren’t surprised.
Dorian came next, slower than Bree, but he finally crossed the threshold two months ago.
Nobody across the freshman year had reached the Aspirant Supernal rank, other than those from the Ambrosia Pact, but Kai was still unsatisfied with the pace. So, he supplied more legal mana ores from his own pocket and split the ores between two people.
Matilda and Bryan were next.
Just as expected, Matilda soared through the ranks as if it had been waiting for her.
For a Supernal of Athena, someone with the blood of an Olympian Goddess in her veins, her mana absorption was terrifyingly high. She was, without a doubt, have an excellent efficiency in mana absorption among the group members, second only to Kai.
Now, the remaining mana ores flowed to Bryan and Abigail—the last two members.
Everyone knew that Kai was rushing.
Every day felt like a countdown, a clock ticking behind his eyes that everyone could see.
Upon returning from the AAA’s Headquarters, Kai gathered the group—and conveyed what his plan was. He was going to the Second Sky without going through the normal way. He was planning to achieve cum laude and rise to the Second Sky through that.
But he didn’t want to leave anyone behind, as he needed a solid group up there.
Due to that, he needed them to achieve the requirements for cum laude, too.
Unlike the normal universities on the surface that only gave cum laude in a specific timeframe, the academies on the First Sky didn’t work like that. As long as the student achieved all of the requirements, they could proceed.
Kai, however, seemed to act like the window was tight.
He was under another timeframe that none knew from where—but he did say that he would need all of them to finish the requirements in five months, and that was four months ago. And one of the harder requirements was to be an Aspirant Supernal.
Of course, the others, with the exception of Abigail, knew about the Fallen Faction.
Despite his hesitation, Kai eventually told them that he was going to that dark organization.
Some resisted as expected, but surprisingly, they took the news better than Kai expected.
Regardless, now that the group was aware of his intention, everyone knew what to aim for.
And with that awareness, the atmosphere in the group had shifted. Most became quieter, more focused; the easy banter of earlier months gave way to a shared—silent understanding. Every single member of the group trained harder. Rested less.
It was hard to do otherwise when they saw how Kai looked these last few months.
Everyone could see the tension in his shoulders—and the way he contemplated hard when he thought no one was looking. He wanted to change something, not something mundane, but something bigger.
For the others, it was admirable, and they couldn’t help but want to help.
All of them followed him for different reasons, but they stuck together nevertheless.
The taxes from the Dead Range and Fire Swamp had changed everything. After the first haul, the group realized they never needed to mine again. The mana ores flowed in without effort— leaving them free to focus entirely on getting stronger.
And Kai made use of it.
He pushed. He calculated. He squeezed every advantage he could find.
Knowing what he got them into, he had to train even harder. It was only going to become far harder starting from now, and if there was a single weakness left in him, the upper skies most certainly would find it and use it against him.
Most days were spent in the Lair of the Small.
It was the cultivated cloud reserved exclusively for the Red Prince and his group.
A wasteland crawling with upper-echelon Pest-class Star Beasts—giants with immense power and raw strength. Since they were the only ones hunting in this cultivated cloud, and with the number of giants roaming on it, they gathered piles of null gems.
And those null gems were converted to null crystals to help the breakthroughs.
The Ambrosia Pact fought them daily—honing their skills and pushing their limits.
Kai and those who were already an Aspirant Supernal also used this moment to consolidate their new powers. Doing so would require them to use their mana constantly—and this hunting ground was perfect for that.
Additionally, the corpses of these giants were highly valued in the factory.
It secured the Ambrosia Pact’s number one spot in the group ranking.
Due to that, they were now kitted with strong gear that suited their new powers.
Other than that, there was also the Barbarian Hold.
It was the domesticated White Sky Gate that was also a privilege reserved for the Red Prince.
A vast and dangerous desert, with Star Beasts far deadlier than anything found in the Lair of the Small. That was why Kai went there alone, or with no more than one companion. For over a month, he scouted the entire place without engaging, learning the terrain before risking his safety.
Out of the entire group, Abigail was the one he brought along the most.
For Abigail, she thought that Kai must’ve seen her as expendable, at least initially.
But the truth was that the desert was harsh, and he constantly needed water to move around.
She was the only one who could provide that.
Kai had already scouted a few camps of Grey Orcs—the Nigh-phantom Imprint made it easy for him to move around despite the harsh sunlight. Sand dunes were his best friend—making it possible for him to stay hidden.
He realized the camps were too large to attack.
Each camp he found was at least one hundred barracks strong, with thousands of Grey Orcs.
And each Grey Orc was really strong for a Pest-class Star Beast.
It would be too much for even the Ambrosia Pact to attack such a large camp.
Only recently, he found a smaller camp with fifty barracks and decided to attack.
Matilda stood at the other edge of the camp—the part that she was responsible for attacking. Her golden sword, which was stabbed into the sand, was dripping with dark blood, and she was gasping for breath, but her lips still curled upward.
Just recently, she had consolidated her new power.
And this was her first real fight in her new state.
Seeing how she could now easily kill a group of strong Pest-class Star Beasts, she truly had gotten stronger. It felt like not too long ago—she struggled against a weak Pest-class Star Beast, and yet now she could kill any Pest-class Star Beast easily.
Crash—!
Matilda raised her gaze at the loud crash and looked at the other side of the camp.
She had already taken down her designated area, but the others were still battling.
"I need to help them."
After inhaling deeply, she pulled out her golden sword and sprinted straight into the battle.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the camp, a loud, mooing sound tore through the air.
It was a deep and guttural sound that came from the throat. A figure with bull horns lowered his head and charged straight at a small group of Grey Orcs that were now fixed on him.
Bryan’s muscles bulged, swelling his frame until he stood a head taller than the Grey Orcs.
And then he sprinted at them like a runaway train.
Almost instantly, the Grey Orcs reacted.
One of them seized his club like holding a baseball bat and swung at the charging mass.
Its eyes widened when the thick club was torn apart upon impact—but it didn’t have time to lament as the charging mass slammed into it, sending it skyward in a tumbled mess of limbs, surprised that anyone could toss its bulk like this.
Another one holding a hammer did the same thing, but the result was the same.
Wood splintered. Iron bent. No weapons could clash with Bryan’s charge.
Four Grey Orcs were sent flipping through the air; the tips of his horns carved deep gashes across their bodies as they stumbled, and then they crashed to the ground hard, rolling across the sand and didn’t get back up.
But the last Grey Orc was different.
It was stronger, and it learned that its weapon wouldn’t do anything against Bryan.
Roar—!
Like a berserker, it let out an overbearing roar and caught Bryan by the horns. The two locked into a battle of strength. Muscles strained—and feet dug trenches into the sand. The Grey Orc slid back, yard by yard, and then inch by inch, fighting to stop Bryan’s momentum.
And then, Bryan slowed down.
His eyes widened, and the Grey Orc smirked, baring its tusks.
And with a thunderous roar, it wrestled the horns and slammed Bryan into the sand.
Crash—!
It raised its hands, interlocked its burly fingers, and swung down.
A hammer fist aimed at Bryan’s skull.
Even now, Bryan was still disoriented from the slam, and he did not see that a skull crusher was coming straight at him. But fortunately for Bryan, it never landed. Something tackled the Grey Orc from the front.
Dorian.
His transformation had changed since reaching Aspirant Supernal rank.
His once monstrous form had evolved into something leaner, more humanoid, and in a way, beautiful. Dorian was less terrifying now—his skin had turned black, coated in natural armor of thick scales that protected his vital spots.
One leg was still that of a donkey, and the other was made of gleaming brass.
But neither slowed him down.
Both legs were of the same length, unlike his human form, so it was manageable.
His hands ended in wicked claws, and his hair was now bright red like a mane of fire.
"Get your fucking filthy hands off of my boy." He gripped the Grey Orc’s neck with bloodlust in his eyes, piercing his claws into the grey flesh. The Grey Orc gagged—but Dorian showed no mercy and crushed its neck.
Splash—!