Chapter 12 Chapter 12: The Fall of the Arcane Heir
The Fall of the Arcane Heir
The words remained floating before my eyes. [Emergency Quest Generated.] [Objective: Save Lyra Valeheart.]
[Failure Result: Academy Destruction.] My breathing became uneven, then the final notification appeared.
[The Crimson Monarch Is Already Inside The Academy.]
For several seconds, I simply stared. No.That wasn't possible.
The academy was protected by countless barriers, hundreds of professors guarded this place.
Archmages, Grandmasters, Ancient defensive formations.
Yet the system was telling me that the Crimson Monarch was already here.
A cold feeling settled deep inside my chest, but something was wrong, very wrong.
Then—BOOM! A terrifying explosion shook the entire academy the walls suddenly trembled, and the windows shattered.
Students screamed, I jumped out of bed instantly. The system flashed violently.
[WARNING.] [WARNING.] [WARNING.] [Catastrophic Threat Detected.]
I rushed toward the window the moment I looked outside...
My blood froze, the sky was red, An endless crimson ocean covered the heavens above the academy.
The moon had vanished, the stars had disappeared, everything was drowning b blood-colored clouds.
The entire academy stood frozen beneath the terrifying sky, students poured from their dormitories.
Professors rushed across the campus, far spread everywhere, then a voice echoed throughout the academy.
A deep voice, came from nowhere, the moment it sounded, several students collapsed instantly.
Others screamed while covering their ears, even I nearly fell to my knees.
"At last." The voice sounded amused. "As expected of this generation." The system flashed frantically.
[CRIMSON MONARCH DETECTED.] [THREAT LEVEL: IMPOSSIBLE.]
[CURRENT SURVIVAL PROBABILITY: 0.001%.]
My heart nearly stopped, Impossible?The system had never used that word before.
Never, then something appeared above the academy, a giant crimson magic circle.
It stretched across the entire sky, students looked upward in horror.
The professors immediately reacted. "Defensive positions!" "Activate the barriers!" "Protect the students!"
Powerful mana erupted everywherezens of professors cast spells simultaneously.
Massive golden shields surrounded the academy, with layers upon layers of protection activated.
Ancient runes illuminated the campus, the academy's strongest defenses had awakened.
For a brief moment, the sky suddenly cracked.
CRACK. A single sound. That was all. The enormous barrier shattered instantly, like glass.
Silence filled the academy. Nobody could believe it. The strongest defensive formation in the empire...
Destroyed with a single sound. Then he appeared. Floating high above the academy.
A man dressed in crimson robes, with long silver hair, pale skin and crimson eyes.
Eyes that looked older than time itself, the moment I saw him...The pair of crimson eyes from the tournament flashed inside my mind.
The hidden observer, the ancient entity.It had been him all along.
The Crimson Monarch, thousands of students stood frozen.
Nobody dared move, nobody dared speak.
Even the professors looked terrified.The Crimson Monarch slowly looked across the academy.
His expression remained calm, as if he were observing insects.
Then he smiled. "I have come for my vessel." The moment he spoke, everyone understood.
Lyra. He wanted Lyra. Suddenly silver mana erupted from one of the academy towers.
BOOM! A powerful aura exploded into the sky.
Lyra. She stood atop the highest tower, with silver light surrounded her body.
Her dark blue hair danced wildly in the wind, she stared directly at the Crimson Monarch.
Fear appeared inside countless students, not because Lyra looked weak, because she looked determined.
And determination against a monster like that felt terrifying.
The Crimson Monarch smiled. "There you are." His crimson eyes glowed.
The silver aura around Lyra immediately trembled, with her face turned pale, she staggered backward.
Yet she remained standing, the students erupted.
"Lyra!" "Run!" "Get away!"
The Crimson Monarch laughed softly. "Resistance."
"I always enjoy resistance." Then dozens of crimson portals appeared throughout the academy.
Students screamed, dark presence emerged from them, Powerful mages, far stronger than the assassins.
Far stronger than Scorpion, each one radiated terrifying mana.
The academy immediately descended into chaos, The invaders attacked and explosions erupted everywhere.
The Imperial Academy Buildings started collapsed making students fled.
Professors fought desperately. My eyes immediately searched for Mira, then I found her.
Near one of the dormitory buildings, she was looking completely terrified.
Surrounded by panicking students, relief flooded my chest, at least she was alive.
Then one of the crimson mages appeared beside her. My heart stopped.
"Mira!" I activated Cheetah Speed instantly. BOOM!
The ground exploded under me. I crossed the courtyard like lightning. The crimson mage reached toward Mira.
Then my fist slammed into his face. CRASH!
The mage flew through a nearby wall. Mira stared at me.
"Rowan!" "Run!" She hesitated. Then nodded.
Tears filled her eyes before she disappeared into the crowd.
I turned. More crimson mages were arriving everywhere, students were being captured, and dragged toward crimson portals.
some professors fought desperately, while others died.
I watched one instructor get torn apart by crimson chains.The sight made my stomach twist, this wasn't an attack.
It was a massacre. The system flashed. [Objective Updated.]
[Protect As Many Students As Possible.]
I gritted my teeth, then charged forward.
Everywhere I looked, people were dying, some students, professors, friends and classmates Nobody was safe.
Phoenix Eyes activated completely, with golden flames filled my vision. I attacked everything in front of me.
One crimson mage, two, three, Arcane Devour erupted, Mana flooded into my body.
Yet it wasn't enough, the enemies kept coming, there were too many, far too many. Then a familiar voice screamed.
"ROWAN!" I turned. Lyra.MSeveral crimson chains had wrapped around her body.MThe Crimson Monarch himself stood before her.
She struggled desperately. Silver mana exploded repeatedly. But the chains refused to break.
The Crimson Monarch simply smiled.."As expected."."The vessel is perfect."
My blood ran cold. Without hesitation, I charged..BOOM!
Cheetah Speed pushed beyond its limits. The world blurred..Students shouted behind me, professors tried stopping me.
I ignored all of them, there was only one target, the Crimson Monarch. I unleashed everything.
Arcane Devour, Phoenix Eyes, Wolf Sense, Shadow Step, with every ounce of power.
I fought without holding back, the distance vanished. My fist reached him.
Then—Nothing happened..The Crimson Monarch looked at me.
Only looked, the pressure that followed was indescribable, every bone inside my body shattered instantly.
CRACK CRACK! CRACK! Agony exploded through me. I screamed, blood erupted from my mouth.
My body flew across the academy. BOOM!.I crashed through three buildings.
Then a fourth. The world spun violently. Pain consumed everything.
The system exploded with warnings. [CRITICAL DAMAGE.][CRITICAL DAMAGE.] [CRITICAL DAMAGE.]
I forced myself up, yet I stood. The Crimson Monarch looked surprised.
"Oh?" "Interesting." His crimson eyes narrowed, the pressure increased. I felt my organs rupture.
Blood poured from my mouth. Still... I took another step.
Then another. Lyra's eyes widened. "Stop!" I ignored her.
The Crimson Monarch smiled. "You are the Arcane Heir." The academy froze, while students stared.
Everyone heard him, the Arcane Heir, my greatest secret being revealed.
The Crimson Monarch laughed.."Such a fragile little thing." Then he raised one finger. I felt death.
True death. The kind that couldn't be escaped. The kind that ended everything.
The system appeared. For the final time.
[Emergency Override Activated.] [Protecting Host.]
Blue light erupted around me. The familiar energy surrounded my body.
Then the Crimson Monarch touched the blue light. The system shattered.
CRACK. I froze..The glowing windows broke apart. One after another.
[ERROR.] [ERROR.] [ERROR.]
The messages flickered violently My heart stopped. No. No. Not the system. Anything but that.
The system had saved me countless times, protected me, guided me, and given me a second chance.
And now... It was breaking. The Crimson Monarch smiled. An interesting toy."
The system flickered again.
[Host...] [Survive...] [Protect...]
The words became distorted. Then the final notification appeared.
[Goodbye.] Everything vanished. The system was gone, completely gone.
A part of me broke at that moment. The Crimson Monarch lowered his hand.
Then pointed at me. Crimson energy shot forward.
BOOM!.Pain consumed everything. My vision blurred. I couldn't breathe, couldn't move, and couldn't think. I collapsed onto the shattered ground.
The academy became distant, voices faded. While the sky darkened blood covered everything, students screamed my name.
Mira cried somewhere nearby. Lyra struggled desperately. Yet I couldn't move, my body had reached its limit.
The Crimson Monarch looked down at me. "You fought well." then he turned away, as if I no longer mattered.
Perhaps I was, the last thing I saw was Lyra, tears filled her silver eyes. "Rowan!" The chains tightened around her.
Then a massive crimson portal opened, the Crimson Monarch stepped into it.Taking Lyra with him.
And countless kidnapped students, the portal began closing, the academy watched helplessly.
Nobody could stop it, not the professors, especially not me.
The portal vanished and silence fell I don't know how much time passed, everything felt distant.
The system was gone, and the academy was ruined.Lyra was gone, and the students were gone, I was dying.
I could hear voices around me. People crying and shouting, someone was holding my hand. Mira.
I recognized her voice. "Please..." "Please don't die..." tears hit my face, warm tears.
Yet I couldn't open my eyes, darkness continued swallowing me, until finally, everything disappeared.
Far away, beyond Imperial academy, and beyond the known world, a strange land existed, filled with crimson stars and endless black mountains.
Ancient ruins stretching toward the horizon, and a world that shouldn't exist and forgotten by history.
At the center of that world... Lyra slowly opened her eyes, pain immediately exploded through her body.
She groaned softened,memories felt fragmented, she sat up slowly, then froze, this wasn't the academy.
This wasn't the empire, nothing looked familiar, with ancient stone structures surrounded her.
Crimson mist covered the ground, fear slowly entered her heart, then a voice sounded across the strange world.
The same voice that terrified the academy. "Welcome home."
Lyra's blood froze. The Crimson Monarch. She slowly turned.
And what she saw made her entire body go numb. The person standing before her wasn't alone.
Thousands of crimson-eyed beings stood behind him and far beyond them... A gigantic crimson throne stretched into the sky.
The Crimson Monarch smiled, "The awakening begins." Lyra's heart nearly stopped.
