Michael moved quietly along a fractured stone pathway, stopping near a collapsed tower where a group of five students were speaking in low tones.
One of the students near the collapsed tower rubbed his arms.
"Does anyone even know why they called us back?" he asked, voice tight. "I’ve been here for more than a day now and no one has reached out to tell me what’s happening. It doesn’t make sense."
Another student, taller, with a torn academy robe tied around his waist like a sash, scoffed.
"You think they’d recall us for no reason?" he said. "The Federation sent soldiers to search for us throughout Hell just to pull us back. That alone tells you something happened."
A third student pointed toward the ruined settlement around them, his expression uneasy as his gaze swept the destroyed walls and collapsed buildings.
"Look at this place," he said quietly. "Just what kind of battle happened here for the station to end up like this?"
The first student frowned.
"I heard there was fighting, but this is beyond fighting," he muttered. "This looks like a war zone."
"I have an idea," a fourth student said.
His voice was low, and the others turned toward him immediately.
He looked around once, checking that no Federation soldier was close enough to listen, then continued.
"It’s said the demonic supernaturals sent their people here," he said. "They wanted to take control of the station. If they controlled the station, they could use it however they wished. I heard somewhere that they could use the station gate to unleash monsters into the real world."
The group’s expressions sharpened.
"That’s already bad enough," the taller one said.
The fourth student swallowed.
As supernaturals who had already entered the academies, even those who came from ordinary backgrounds and had little knowledge about the deeper conflicts of the world had begun to understand certain things.
A short time in the academy was enough to open their eyes.
Lessons were not limited to bat techniques or mana control. History, faction studies, forbidden organizations, and supernatural ethics were all part of their foundational education. It was necessary knowledge for anyone stepping into a battlefield where power, ideology, and survival intertwined.
One of the most emphasized topics had always been the demonic supernaturals.
It was said that these individuals pursued power without restraint.
Not ambition within limits.
Not structured growth under law.
But absolute power, regardless of consequence.
They were known to use methods most supernaturals considered taboo, methods that crossed ethical, spiritual, and even existential boundaries.
There were records.
Dark ones.
Buried deep within restricted archives but still taught in fragments to academy students so they would understand the scale of the threat.
During the Dark Age, when mana first descended upon Aurora, their home realm, chaos had ruled the world.
Humanity and emerging supernaturals were still trying to understand mana, its laws, and how to coexist with the creatures that appeared alongside it.
That period became the breeding ground for demonic factions.
Back then, power systems were unstable, cultivation paths inplete, and regulation almost nonexistent. In that chaos, some supernaturals chose shortcuts.
Forbidden shortcuts.
It was recorded that demonic supernaturals had used sacrificial methods to amplify their power using human lives.
At the peak of those dark experiments, sacrificing a hundred thousand lives in a single ritual was not considered excessive.
There were even records of million-life sacrifices used to fuel catastrophic ascension attempts or summon entities from beyond their realm.
Those events had scarred Aurora deeply.
It was part of the reason demonic supernaturals were hunted relentlessly in modern times.
Not simply because they were enemies.
But because history had proven what happened when they were left unchecked.
"That wasn’t the worst part," the fourth student added. "The most important thing was that a Demon Lord descended."
For a moment, nobody spoke.
It was as if the air itself had frozen.
Then the first student’s eyes widened.
"A Demon Lord?" he repeated, almost whispering.
The tall student let out a breath that sounded more like disbelief than relief.
"That’s impossible," he said, but even as he said it, his voice lacked certainty.
Another student in the group, one who had been quiet until now, finally spoke up.
"I thought Demon Lords could only appear from the Thirtieth Floor downward," he said slowly. "We’re on the First Floor. How were we even affected?"
The question hung in the air.
It was logical.
The fourth student, the one who had been sharing most of the information, shook his head.
"I don’t know all the details," he admitted. "Most of what I heard is fragmented. Rumors passed around after we got recalled."
He hesitated briefly before continuing.
"But there’s one part that keeps ing up. Too many people are saying the same thing for it to be pletely false."
The others leaned closer instinctively.
"They said the Demon Lord didn’t appear on the First Floor," he said quietly. "It appeared on the Fifteenth Floor."
The group froze.
"The Fifteenth?" the first student repeated.
The fourth nodded.
"Yeah. And from what I heard, if not for intervention from other races stationed in Hell, it might have pushed its way upward."
A visible chill passed through the group that had nothing to do with the frozen environment of the First Floor.
"You mean..." the tall student began, then stopped.
"Yeah," the fourth said. "It might have reached the First Floor itself."
Silence followed.
The idea alone was enough to make their expressions pale.
One of the students rubbed the back of his neck, forcing out a strained laugh.
"Well... as long as we’re safe now, that’s what matters, right?"
The words sounded hollow, but no one challenged them.
Because relief was still relief, even if it came wrapped in fear.
From the shadows nearby, Michael remained silent.
But his eyes had sharpened.
Because unlike the students, he knew something they did not.
He had been there.
And the truth of what happened on the Fifteenth Floor... was far more dangerous than rumors made it sound.
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