Chapter 9: A Name Worth Remembering
The rescue team arrived just as the last section of the cavern ceiling collapsed.
A wall of pale blue mana pushed aside the dust and falling rocks, revealing several academy instructors in reinforced combat armor. At their head stood Head Instructor Rowan, his expression grim as he surveyed the battlefield.
His eyes quickly found the enormous corpse of the Venomfang Broodmother.
For a brief moment, nobody spoke.
"A... Tier-Two Boss?" one instructor whispered.
"Inside the Green Mist trial?"
"Impossible..."
The shattered remains of the cavern told the story better than any witness could. Broken webs covered the walls. Cracked stone pillars littered the ground. Pools of dark blood spread around the corpse of the giant spider.
Then Rowan noticed the students.
Marcus and the others were alive.
And standing a short distance away was Kael, quietly cleaning the blade of his spear before placing it over his shoulder.
Rowan walked toward him.
"Who killed it?"
Marcus opened his mouth.
For a second, his pride fought against reality.
Finally, he lowered his head.
"...Kael."
Silence returned.
Several instructors stared at the young Scrap Artisan in disbelief.
"The F-Rank student?"
Marcus nodded reluctantly.
"He saved us."
No one laughed.
No one questioned him.
The evidence lay only a few meters away.
Rowan studied Kael carefully. His clothes were torn, traces of dried blood covered his armor, and the strange machine on his back still released thin streams of steam.
"You fought it alone?"
"I had help distracting it," Kael answered calmly. "The final blow was mine."
It wasn’t false modesty.
It was simply the truth.
Rowan gave a slow nod.
"Regardless of how it happened, you prevented multiple student deaths today."
Nearby, Lyra finally reached the group. Her face was pale after hearing what had happened.
She looked at Kael from head to toe before letting out a relieved breath.
"I thought..."
She stopped herself.
Kael smiled faintly.
"I’m fine."
She shook her head.
"You always say that."
Several students nearby exchanged confused looks.
The same boy they had mocked only hours earlier had returned after defeating a boss monster that should never have appeared inside the trial.
Their whispers spread quickly.
"Didn’t they say he awakened an F-Rank class?"
"I saw the boss myself."
"He really fought it..."
"No... he won."
Marcus listened to every word in silence.
For the first time since entering the academy, he felt completely overshadowed.
Rowan raised his hand.
"The dungeon trial is officially over."
"The remaining students will be evacuated immediately."
He looked once more toward the Broodmother’s corpse.
"The Academy will investigate how a Tier-Two Boss entered a beginner dungeon."
As the instructors organized the evacuation, Kael quietly stepped away from the crowd.
He had already taken the materials he wanted.
There was nothing else worth staying for.
Unknown to everyone else...
A small blue notification appeared before his eyes.
[Hidden Achievement Unlocked]
First Boss Cleared Alone
Reward Available
Kael’s heartbeat quickened.
He accepted it without hesitation.
The screen dissolved into countless streams of blue light before reforming.
Reward Obtained
Blueprint Acquired: Modular Scrap Forge (Rare)
New Skill Unlocked: Material Analysis (Level 1)
A flood of information entered his mind.
Different metals.
Mana conductivity.
Weak points.
Purification methods.
Within seconds, Kael understood materials at a level he could never have imagined before.
His eyes slowly opened.
"So this is..."
He looked toward the broken armor scattered across the cavern floor.
Without using the System...
He could already estimate their quality.
He smiled.
"The next piece of equipment will be even better."
Far above the dungeon, hidden among the trees overlooking the entrance, an elderly man wearing a long black robe watched everything through a crystal lens.
His wrinkled face remained expressionless.
"An F-Rank Scrap Artisan..."
He watched Kael leave with the strange machine on his back.
"No."
"Not just an Artisan."
"A genius."
The old man slowly turned away.
"It seems Oakhaven Academy has produced someone... the Guild will want to meet."
Behind him, a silver hawk took flight into the evening sky, carrying a sealed message toward the capital.
For the first time...
Kael Vance’s name had begun to spread beyond the academy walls.
To Be Continued...
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