Abyssal Awakening

Chapter 231: Crimson Witch of Ruin

[Crimson Witch of Ruin - ??????]

Seeing the title above her head, Alice felt her pupils constrict in shock.

A beast! A beast was the principal of one of the best Academies in the Abyss, one that teaches people how to kill other beasts!

'What the hell is going on?' Alice frowned. She wanted to see if there was something wrong with her vision but it was perfectly normal. She wasn't hallucinating, the principal was indeed a beast and a powerful one at that.

"Alice… Did Allura ever mention she has a twin or something?" Ria whispered with a slight frown.

She too saw the similarities between the beast and Allura but that was it. She didn't know that she was actually looking at a beast.

"No. But she's not a Hunter. I see six stars above her head." Alice whispered back, making sure the others around her didn't overhear her.

Widening her eyes, Ria glanced back and forth between the principal and Alice. Seeing as how Alice wasn't joking around, Ria understood the severity of the matter.

"Six stars… Do you think she has a goal by acting as the principal? Was the real principal taken or has it been a beast all along?"

"Don't know. But she's something called a Crimson Witch of Ruin." Alice shook her head. Regardless of what they may discover thanks to Cayla, the truth was that she is the principal and they're simply examinees looking to enrol into her Academy.

There was probably a deeper reason as to why she looked like Allura but it's something Alice hoped to figure out later.

For now, she focused on the details of the exam.

The exam was split into three sections. First were the examinees who wanted to enrol. Second were the students who wanted to advance into the next classification and lastly, the qualified who desired to become Special classed Students.

"As you may know, Silverwind Academy is split into three major categories. Theory, Handicraft and Combat. All examinees will take on three separate examinations to determine your skill with the different subjects and see which area you are more suited towards. Of course, if you desire to study a different subject despite your talents, you may do so.

"But you'll need to prove yourself to our Heads of Department. Elara, Head of Theory, Xinbei, Head of Handicrafts and Garret, Head of Combat." The principal explained as she snapped her finger.

Beside her, the three Department Heads walked up all with serious expressions, even Xinbei. They all wore smart suits and stood side by side.

Feeling a gaze on her, Alice glanced up and noticed that it was the Head of Theory, Elara. But the gaze was brief and she looked away just as fast.

'Is it because of my hood?' Alice wondered to herself while the Principal explained the first test.

"The first exam of the day will be simple. You will undergo the examination while the current students, Department Heads and the Special class Students watch. Once you pass the first exam, you will take the second exam with existing students. Upon taking the second exam to determine your rank within this Academy, you will be considered to be officially enrolled.

The rules of each Exam will be explained by the Heads of Department. I wish all of you good luck and I hope to see you in the next round." The principal smiled as she snapped her finger and a wave of blood mist surrounded the entire courtyard.

Seeing the mist enveloping several hundred people all at once, Alice could see the movement of energy surging from all around them.

Even though she could see what was happening with Cayla, the process was too fast for her to react!

In an instant, everyone was enveloped in darkness as their surroundings began to change. The courtyard, teachers and the existing students disappeared, leaving only the new examinees behind.

"Hi~ Can I have your attention please~" Elara's voice rang out as everyone turned towards her. She was the only one who hadn't disappeared along with the others.

"The theory exam will be split into two sections. I'm not a fan of sitting down and writing on a piece of paper to determine your talent. Therefore, we shall proceed with a live demonstration!" She chuckled before clapping her hands together.

In front of every examinee, a table appeared with a single beast tied to the table. It was still alive and judging by the way their eyes looked, they seemed to be under some sort of narcotic.

"Your goal is simple~ I want you to extract blood of varying purity from each part of the beast. Harvest the organs that will be useful and write down their functions. You don't have to get everything right~ You just have to demonstrate what you know in the shortest time you can. Any questions?" Elara asked as tools appeared next to the beast.

One of the examinees raised their hand as Elara turned to them.

"What if I just want to take the Handicrafts exam? Do I still have to take this one?"

"Nope~ This is not mandatory at all~ But you have more chances of enrolling if you get some points from here. You can think of it as a backup plan~ Any other questions?" Elara explained.

While she was explaining, she continuously snuck glances towards Alice while her smile grew wider with each glance.

Alice felt a familiar chill down her spine but was confused by why she felt it from Elara.

All she did was glance at her occasionally.

'Runi did say the Department Head was interested in beasts and Abyss Blood. Maybe she's curious because of my crown?' Alice wondered to herself, pulling her hood down further.

The feeling she was getting from her was similar yet very different to the Scholars that experimented on her before.

It wasn't malicious or greed but something else entirely that Alice was unfamiliar with.

"Urg… maybe I should skip this exam." Ria groaned as she was only really good for Combat. Theory and Handicrafts were beyond her.

"You could if you want. But as the Department Head said, it's just extra points. And honestly, doesn't hurt to give it a try." Alice shrugged as she examined the tools in front of her.

It was the standard equipment that she used while helping Arunya with her experiments so Alice was pretty familiar.

"Are we allowed to use Sigil abilities or is it purely tools and knowledge?" Alice asked while raising her hand.

"Excellent question~ You are allowed to use anything and everything to attain the results you desire. Out in the field, there are no rules saying you can't use your Sigils after all~" Elara forced a smile while trying to keep herself composed.

'Ah~ Her voice is cute as expected~ Fufu, ask more questions, talk more, show me more~'

Feeling a shiver down her spine again, Alice was confused by her body's reaction.

'Did I drink too much yesterday? What the f*ck is going on with me today?' She frowned while taking deep breaths to calm her mind. Since Sigil abilities were allowed, Alice activated her third Sigil.

Blood and metal swirled around her as she set up the operating table to her liking.

The tools were strung by threads and dangled in front of her while the vials were placed neatly to the side. Grabbing the scalpel, Alice didn't hesitate and sliced into the beast with speed and precision.

Watching Alice dissect and extract the blood from the beast, Ria couldn't help but marvel at her technique. She knew that Alice had a knack for this but this was beyond what she had initially expected.

It felt as though she was watching a seasoned professional work their craft as Alice peeled back the layers of muscle and directly injected the extractor into their veins.

Deciding to try and emulate Alice's workflow, Ria grabbed the scalpel and cut into the beast.

Only…

It died on impact as she used too much strength and the beast was cut in half instead.

". . ." Looking at the beast in silence, Ria was speechless.

"You might want to extract the blood now. The purity is dropping already." Alice reminded.

If you desired high-purity blood, each second was precious.

While Alice was operating on the beast, she couldn't help but notice a few examinees who were showing far more talent than her in this field of work. Not only that, their Sigils were also selected to help them with experiments.

A girl with spectral hands puppeteering the beast's body to extract the blood, a guy who could put the beast into stasis using ice and another who relied only on his technique. Not only did he extract the blood the fastest, but he had also stitched up his incisions and the beast was relatively unharmed, free to be harvested later in the future.

Each of them had a different approach and each was far better than what Alice was capable of.

Of course, if she wanted to be competitive against them, she could try and replicate some of the harder techniques that were used on her. But she wasn't aiming for the Theory department, so this was enough.

As the first part of the Theory exam concluded, Alice estimated that she probably finished fourth. Just as how there was a gap between her and the top three who were aiming for a spot in the Theory Department, those beneath her faced a gap that couldn't be bridged easily without talent.

And that was raw experience. In her case, experience of being the one being operated on.

After the first part of the exam concluded, Elara wasted no time in beginning the second half. The first half tested technique, understanding and polish while the second tested practical application.