Stepping through the golden curtain felt like crossing into another dinsion. The air in the Grand Section was impossibly pure, like it carried the Grace of centuries-old artifacts.
Lancet figured that it actually did.
As he entered, his presence imdiately drew attention. Vernon Heavenblum and Renan Falconhart both paused, casting surprised glances in his direction.
Valeria Bloodgood, however, didn’t even turn her head. The Fourth-Year Grand Dragoon was completely engrossed in a display of weapons, particular a golden spear.
Valeria was tall, with a slender, military-style fra that was mostly hidden by the Academy’s rigid uniform. Her hair was orange in color, streaked with sharp lines of white that fell over her shoulders.
As a Grand Dragoon, she was an unimaginably gifted fighter, especially with a spear. Watching her appraise the weapons, Lancet couldn’t help but imagine that she looked like Astensia must have in her earlier, mortal days.
Being a 1-Star Platinum, it was highly likely Valeria could reach Astensia’s legendary levels one day. ’Maybe,’ Lancet thought. ’But she might need an Advancent to actually be anywhere as strong as Astensia.’
Lancet returned to the present, his eyes darting from Renan to Vernon. Knowing exactly what he was looking for, he ignored their stares and headed straight toward the heavy armor section.
As he began his inspection, searching for the armor he needed, Vernon Heavenblum slowly approached.
The Year 5 student had his hands clasped loosely behind his back. He looked down at Lancet, his eyes narrowing slightly below his shoulder line.
"I never expected that soone like you would be allowed in here," he drawled.
Lancet looked up. Vernon’s aura was a little too stifling, almost freezing Lancet to the spot. It was only worsened by his good looks; the chiseled jawline and the strands of curly brown hair that fell over on one side of his face.
Nevertheless, Lancet knew to maintain his ’never back down’ rule. He t Vernon’s condescending gaze head-on.
"Well, I was allowed," Lancet said simply. "My summons are leading the charge in both major roles of the raid. Isn’t it only fair that I’m allowed to be here?"
Vernon’s breath lurched, surprised by the audacious counter.
"He has a point," Valeria said suddenly.
She still hadn’t looked away from the spear rack, her fingers trailing over a fine shaft. "Hebthej had a fighting chance with just us, but with his two legends joining the battle, victory is practically imminent and the town will be saved. We have to show him the respect he deserves on this team."
Vernon scoffed, his face twisting in distaste. "Valeria, our small camaraderie over these past few days of training shouldn’t blind you to the fact that I am still your senior. Speaking to like that is unacceptable."
Valeria’s eyes narrowed dangerously, but she bit her tongue, saying nothing as she returned to her selection. Renan watched the exchange silently, a slight frown tugging at his noble features as he picked up a pair of gauntlets.
Vernon turned his glare back down to Lancet, stepping slightly closer to exert his aura. "Your summon, Thor Stormchild, has stolen my role in this mission. And sohow, you get to be rewarded for it with access to the Grand Vault. That kind of thing, Lancet Leogardt, is it just at all?"
Lancet stared up at him, reading the Year Five student like an open book. ’This guy expected the Hebthej raid to be his grand coronation,’ Lancet realized. ’And now he’s furious that the spotlight is being taken from him.’
In the original novel, Vernon had hated Renan ever since this exact arc. Even though Vernon got to kill the first Demon Head, Renan’s spectacular killing of the second head had completely overshadowed him in the Academy.
But this ti, because of Lancet’s intervention, it was going to be infinitely worse for Vernon’s ego. With Thor aiming for the first, and Lancet aiming for the second, Vernon wasn’t going to kill any of the Demon Heads.
"Does that kind of stuff even matter?"
The sudden question broke the tension. Lancet turned to see Renan facing them. The Heavenly Knight looked genuinely perplexed.
"I’m sorry to intrude, Senior Vernon," Renan said earnestly. "But this isn’t about personal gain or glory. It’s about saving people, right?"
Lancet’s eyebrows raised, his eyes widening slightly. There was a strange, guilty thump in his heart. It suddenly felt like Renan wasn’t just speaking to Vernon.
Before Vernon could snap at Renan, Valeria finally turned around.
In her hands, she spun the new spear she had just purchased. The weapon cut through the air with a magical sound, glowing so brightly it looked like a spinning star.
Lancet appraised the weapon.
[ Weapon: Starsplitter ]
[ Grade: S ]
[ Details: Forged from star-tal by the Blacksmith of the Elders ]
[ Active: Carries burning heat and light of stars, capable of completely purifying Demons on contact. (Output varies with Rank).
[ Passive: Completely bypasses physical defense layers. It inflicts True Damage that scales exponentially with the velocity of the user’s strike. ]
Valeria rested the overpowered halberd against her shoulder, looking dead at Vernon.
"You might be my senior," Valeria stated coldly, "but we are all teammates on this mission. And when we step out there, the Academy walls are behind us, which ans the ranks on our uniform sleeves an absolutely nothing."
She glanced montarily at Lancet, then back at Vernon. "I respect you, Senior Vernon. But if you do not respect our fellow teammate—especially one as crucial as him—then I will have to oppose you."
Lancet couldn’t believe it. He just stared at the orange-haired Dragoon. Since the day he awakened his ’Dull’ class, he had beco so used to the constant insults, the sneers, and the minor aggressive attacks that he had completely forgotten people actually did stand up for others.
He glanced over at Renan, who nodded at him reassuringly.
Even people he didn’t like.
Vernon looked between Valeria and Renan. After a mont, he hissed a sharp breath through his teeth and looked away.
"Whatever," Vernon muttered dismissively. "As long as we all return alive and the mission is successful." He turned on his heel and stord off toward a rack of Casting Staffs.
Lancet, still startled by all of it, looked at Valeria. "Thank you," he managed to say.
"Don’t ntion it," Valeria replied, her deanor becoming softer. "Besides, I haven’t had a chance to thank you for agreeing to send your summons to the front lines. Summoners are usually highly codependent and protective of their summons. I understand this must have been a difficult choice for you to let them fight away from your side."
Lancet smiled, feeling a genuine warmth replace his earlier bitterness. "It is to protect a town, right? To save people? How could I say no?"
Valeria smiled back, a bright, warrior’s grin. "Choose your equipnt quickly, Lancet. We shall see each other on the battlefield."
Lancet nodded. He turned to the Heavenly Knight. "Thanks too, Renan."
Renan gave him an easy smile. "Anyti."
"Can you all purchase your equipnt in silence?!" Vernon’s voice snapped from across the aisle.
They all rolled their eyes and turned to continue buying.
Lancet stood still for a mont, thoughts swirling his mind. After a while, he took in a deep breath and focused his mind.
He had asked for a larger amount of Profits because he knew the equipnt necessary to help him kill the Demon Head wasn’t going to be cheap.
Utilizing what he rembered from the novel’s lore, Lancet searched for the exact items. He found the first locked in a stasis case at the very back.
It was an armor set.
[ Armor Set: The Purifier’s Duskguard ]
[ Grade: S ]
[ Details: Woven during the Era of Rebirth using silver-threaded mythril. ]
[ Passive: This armor burns away Demonic Miasma within a two-foot radius, acting as an absolute deterrent to Gloom infection. Highly resistant to slashing and blunt force. ]
[ Price: 120,000 Profits ]
As expected, it was incredibly expensive given its Grade and power. But it was completely necessary to deter the Gloom in Hebthej, and more importantly, survive the Gloom Domain made by the Second Head.
A Gloom Domain would completely attack and weaken their Grace channels. With this armor, Lancet’s channels would be protected, and he could fight completely unaffected by the evil magical energy.
Not long after, he found the sword he wanted wrapped in the arms of a very real-looking mannequin.
[ Weapon: The Radiant Guillotine ]
[ Grade: S ]
[ Details: One of the two Radiant Guillotines forged by the Blacksmiths of the Elders. A golden blade with pure silver edges. ]
[ Active: Capable of slicing through Demon flesh with zero resistance. ]
[ Passive: Contains the [Soul-Trap] chanic. ]
[ Price: 125,000 Profits ]
Lancet grinned as he felt the weapon bind to his Grace. He knew exactly how overpowered the Radiant Guillotine was.
Every ti the silver edge cut a Demon, the hilt absorbed the expelled Gloom and life-force, trapping the demonic energy and storing it within the red stone in the hilt.
There were many reasons why one would trap Demon Souls. Lancet had his own.
"Ti is up!" the Official’s voice bood from the vault entrance. "You are all being summoned to the hall for the send-off. Move out!"
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