For several tense moments, it seemed Harold would lose control completely. But finally, with a supreme effort of will, he managed to dominate the beast. Almost. His face still showed marked chitinous patterns, like living scars that refused to disappear. His injured leg and other areas where he’d received damage remained partially transformed, flesh and carapace mixing grotesquely. But at least he had regained control. He grabbed Luna by the hair and began dragging her toward where they kept Liora wrapped. "There are many beasts in the school that can create coverings," the spy commented worriedly as Harold dragged the poor girl and caught his breath. "I can stay at the academy, keep my eyes open and continue reporting..." Harold looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. "They’ll interrogate you after this even if you pretend I kidnapped you..." "I know, it’s a big risk... That’s why I need you to rough me up a bit," the spy smiled weakly, though his eyes betrayed his nervousness. "Make the situation more believable." "As you wish," Harold shrugged, but when he raised his fist, the patterns on his face intensified, darkening like spilled ink. The rage he had been containing bubbled back to the surface, a primal fury he couldn’t fully suppress. The blow was brutal, too brutal. The spy collapsed, barely conscious, blood flowing from his shattered nose and split lip. His head bounced off the metal floor with a sickening thud. "Sorry," Harold muttered, his claws retracting slowly as worry at his own lack of control settled in. "I... I overdid it." ♢♢♢♢ On the metal bridge where they kept the other hostages, Harold observed the unconscious bodies of Liu and Liora… His claws grew involuntarily at seeing Liu, the headache from the sonic attack still present and returning with a vengeance, demanding retribution. For a moment he considered finishing what he’d started, his transformed hand flexing with murderous intent, but his damaged antennae captured even more movement now both above and in the tunnel that Ren’s group had created. There was no time for indulgences. "The emblem," he ordered his mole. The beast regurgitated a small crystal carved with the symbol of the Venmonts, one of Yino’s most prominent houses. Harold took it carefully, it was more than a simple key, it was evidence of the trust his kingdom placed in him. When he placed the emblem on the ancient door, it reacted immediately. Mechanisms hidden for centuries came to life, responding to House Venmont’s call. The ancient door opened with a metallic sound that echoed through the spherical structure. Harold took a step toward the tunnel but stopped when he heard a groan behind him. The other spy was staggering, the blow had done more damage than planned. Blood still flowed freely from his nose, and his eyes couldn’t quite focus. "Stay," Harold ordered, his antennae vibrating while analyzing the path ahead. "There are only 6 students with normal beasts in there... My antennae are injured but I can sense that 2 of them lost their mana signature." "But... how did they open...? If they got in they could be..." the spy leaned against the wall, still dizzy from the impact. "I don’t know," Harold frowned, the chitinous patterns on his face undulating with his expression. "But I don’t think they’re from Yino, nor do I think they’re strong from what I saw and felt when they were trying to escape those weak guards. Probably the 2 extinguished presences are 2 of those fools... the princess’s guards probably already took care of them and left one alive for questioning..." A cruel smile formed on his lips while dragging Luna closer. "Just one princess left with two low-level guards and a hostage. If I let myself go a little more..." He stopped, an idea forming in his mind distorted by the transformation. "You don’t need to follow me. They probably fought among themselves, wore out the guards and the princess... But if she uses the ring..." His grip on Luna’s hair tightened, causing the unconscious girl to moan softly. "I’ll use this bitch to make the princess lose focus, it’ll surely be her with her iron rank beast who demands to carry the ring. Maybe she won’t give me much trouble or be able to escape with her jumps if she’s worried about her friend..." The spy watched with growing concern as Harold’s features became more bestial while imagining the scene, the transformation spreading further across his face. "The face she’ll make when she sees..." Harold laughed, a sound that was more insect than human. The chitinous segments on his face expanded, his transformation advancing as he entered the tunnel. "Are you sure that...?" the spy began trying to stand, but Harold was no longer listening. ’Too easy,’ he thought while advancing, dragging Luna. ’A frightened iron rank princess, two tired guards...’ His antennae vibrated with anticipation, ignoring the warning signals trying to pierce through his mind intoxicated by power. All he could think about was the reward he would receive for delivering not one, not two, but three prisoners of such value. The tunnel curved ahead, and Harold could sense presences. A predatory smile formed on his deformed face as he prepared for his triumphant entrance. ♢♢♢♢ Ren couldn’t stop thinking about Larissa’s words. Could he really kill someone? His hand trembled remembering the fury he had felt when the guard threatened Min, how for a moment he had been willing to... The memory of that rage frightened him almost as much as the situation itself. Larissa interrupted his thoughts with a whimper, holding the two potions her ’traitorous’ guards had given her. "It’s not fair... Why do I have to be the only one in trouble?" she murmured sadly but with a small air of happiness. She looked at them with accusing eyes while they avoided her gaze. Min and Taro scratched their heads, pretending sudden interest in the metallic walls that surrounded them. The moment of levity shattered when they felt it... a wave of power emerging from outside the seed. A door had opened, but the mana emanating from one of the tunnels... "Abyssal?" Larissa whispered, her mineral fairy detecting the corruption in the energy, its wings trembling at the tainted power. Everyone tensed. The guards, despite their exhaustion, immediately positioned themselves in front of Larissa, their beasts barely beginning to regenerate. "Don’t be foolish!" Larissa tried to push them aside. "You barely have mana! Your beasts haven’t even fully reformed!" "Our duty is to protect you," they responded firmly, though their stances betrayed their mana fatigue. Ren stepped forward, his hydra armor manifesting in brilliant crystalline scales with glowing veins now even more imposing due to the ring’s addition. "Stay back. I’ll handle this." "But you..." Larissa began, evident concern in her voice. Ren hesitated for a moment. Could he really kill someone even if they were an abyssal? The idea turned his stomach and sent chills down his spine, but... he clenched his teeth and fists. This wasn’t the time for doubts. His carapace began to shine with increasing intensity, his mushrooms’ light veins feeding the hydra’s light power. The figure that emerged from the tunnel was monstrous, a hybrid of human and insect that dragged something... no, someone. Ren’s eyes fixed on Luna, unconscious and bleeding, her hair being used cruelly as a leash by that abomination. Something changed inside him. "LUNA!" Larissa’s scream seemed distant as fury flooded through Ren. Continue your adventure with freewebnovel The internal light of his mushrooms still traveling through his body in numerous small veins exploded, feeding a power he shouldn’t be able to use yet. The consumed ring’s enhancement resonated with his rage, amplifying the luminous energy to impossible levels. The hydra’s light beam manifested in all its destructive glory. Harold barely had time to register the strange situation as he was blinded by an intense radiance. His injured antennae caught the danger too late, he had been so sure of his victory that he hadn’t noticed the sudden accumulation of power... Luna awakened at that moment feeling the intense light. With the last remnant of her mana, she created a shadow behind Harold and clutched his leg, anchoring him in place for another small instant. The beam pierced through Harold like a miniature sun, its purifying light tearing through the abyssal corruption like divine judgment made manifest.