God's Slave: Reincarnated Into an Academy of Heavenly Descendants

Chapter 167: Losing Her...

All was not feeling right for Nolan.

The person before him—he had no idea who she was, nor her status within the academy.

But she was strong, strong enough to make him, the strongest newcomer, feel challenged by her presence.

He had watched her moves, how she reacted to his blows, and he could tell she was a seasoned killer.

The way she silently moved through the darkness, the way she carried out her sneak attacks, and the way her sword aimed for his life, even as it tried its best to block his dagger—he could tell she was a worthy enemy.

But that only confused him more.

If she wasn't a Newcomer, which was pretty obvious to him, then was she an Ascendant?

But still, that brought its own headache.

Why would an Ascendant be sent to the front door of his dorm room, he a simple Newcomer, just to plant runic explosion cards when they could have easily killed him without going through the trouble?

He could tell the person before him was a cold killer, but he felt no killing intent from her.

She wanted him dead, but not directly by her sword.

Unstead, she planted runic cards within his room that would indirectly bring an end to him once triggered.

He didn't understand why anyone would go through that kind of trouble.

Or perhaps they want his death to be like naturally Induced due to a weird explosion or just what?

Still, Nolan shoved all the questions away as he prepared to burst forth with speed, when a voice rang out loudly in his ear as the lady lowered her katana.

"It seems we have underestimated your growth a lot, Heir of the Accursed."

"You deserve death, but it won't be in my hands."

"So for now, your life is spared. Enjoy it well, while it..." Lilith was saying, but cracks instantly spread across the alleyway—the source none other than the ground where Nolan stood—and immediately, Nolan faded away like a phantom.

"SHRRRRRINGGG!"

The sound of a blade tearing through the air resounded, followed by an incredibly powerful wave of energy bursting up I to the sky of the alleyway, causing quite a few heads to turn from the surrounding buildings.

But just as the large wave of light came, it disappeared, and everything was left calm once more.

Now in the dark alleyway, only a single figure stood, and a single sound continuously echoed.

"DROP... DROP... DROP..."

It was the sound of red blood dripping down, and its source came from none other than the figure standing alone in the darkness.

On the face, a smooth and deep diagonal line was carved, red blood trailing down and gently splattering on the floor as he remained motionless.

The figure was none other than Nolan himself.

Silently and alone, he stood, his eyes closed.

Slowly, they opened up, and his lips parted, spreading into an incredibly wide grin.

"I guess I underestimated her a little. She really is an Ascendant..." he mused as the dagger in his hand slowly faded away.

Quickly, the long diagonal wound on Nolan's face began closing up, his skin patching together like two magnets attracted to each other until it fully closed.

The result was clear.

When Nolan attacked at the last second, the person he fought exploded with an incredible amount of power, coming from none other than the second runic card on the side of her neck.

As he slashed her, he felt as though he was slashing nothing but a fading shadow.

Yet, when her shadow sword had cleaved past his face, it had carved a long line, leaving him in defeat as the assassin escaped.

In short, he had failed.

He might have underestimated his opponent—she was an Ascendant, one skilled at killing.

[The light from her runic card activation is quite bright.]

[I would advise you to leave here if you don't want attention,] the system warned in his head as Nolan prepared to take off.

But his eyes caught something on the side.

It was none other than the dark demon mask which he had torn off from the assassin's face during their battle.

Nolan picked it up before jumping up and fading into the distance.

---

"The Onis, huh?"

The voice echoed through the small bedroom where a figure slept, a mask in hand.

It was a broken mask, but from it, Nolan had been able to learn one more thing about the girl—and that was whichever cult or clan she belonged to.

It had been scripted at the other side of the mask, in a place where almost none would be able to see, just two simple words:

"The Oni..."

Nolan had no idea what that meant, but now he had some things he knew for sure.

The first was just as he had guessed: His enemies weren't the Newcomers—they were the Ascendants themselves.

The person who had been planting runic cards on his dorm room these past few days was an Ascendant!

And also, the words the girl had told him before she left:

---

"It seems we have underestimated your growth a lot, Heir of the Accursed."

---

It confirmed to Nolan finally—the only reason they were chasing after his life and hunting him.

It was just as Gaia had said. It was due to his background. He was the heir of the banished Accursed clan.

They knew him well, just as the girl had said, but they were only attacking him now because he was growing stronger.

They must have all thought the Newcomer hierarchy would be enough to end him, and true to their thoughts, it had.

The real Nolan had died at the hands of Quinn.

But now there was a new Nolan—one whose growth was making them restless.

[Chaos will be waiting for you when you reach that Ascendant hierarchy.] The system said as Nolan's fist tightened up.

"Tch"

-------

Days passed rapidly, and it had to be the best—or worst—days for some of the Newcomers.

For those who knew that, in just a few days, they would be moving up to the Ascendant hierarchy, they felt nothing but joy.

Soon, they would be leaving this place for a higher level, where their growth would be nothing short of monumental.

There were no classes at all for the entire duration.

Just as the Ascendants had said, the students woke up whenever they wanted, ate whenever they wanted, and played around as they pleased.

No instructor was around to monitor them, and they didn't have to rush to class since all sessions were off.

It was like the perfect holiday away from all sorts of school life.

However, for those who knew they would be repeating the class, the holiday was nothing short of a headache.

Knowing well that after this short break, they would be back to square one, repeating everything they had learned for the past three years, all over again for the next three.

It was nothing short of a disastrous development.

But time was fast, and soon, it was just one day before the transfer of Newcomers to the Ascendant hierarchy would begin.

---

STEP. STEP. STEP.

The sound of calm and unhurried footsteps echoed, as soles pressed against the ground, moving up the flight of stairs.

From far away, one could already hear the faint reverberation of walls and the muffled sound of something being slammed together.

Finally, the footsteps paused as they arrived before a door.

A hand moved towards the doorknob—large and no doubt belonging to an adult—grabbing the knob and gently twisting it before stepping inside.

SWWOOSH.

Immediately, the figure was faced with the sight of a body—a dummy—swinging through the air and slamming towards his face.

Yet, it mysteriously stopped mid-air at the last second as the figure raised his hand, signaling for the motion to stop.

The dummy remained suspended in the air unmoving.

Gently, he waved his hand again, and the dummy shifted to the side, falling with a loud bang.

The sound of banging ceased, and dark pupils scanned the room. His eyes finally settled in on the center of the area.

There stood a masculine figure with a naked upper body, and blood dripped down his left wrist like rainfall, forming a puddle on the ground.

In his right hand was a dagger, radiating a brilliant crimson light, while his arm—bursting with veins—held it firmly.

Blood trailed down the edge of the dagger, dripping onto the floor.

His white hair clung to his head, stained in deep crimson—no doubt his own blood.

"Ahhhhh..." The sound of an exhale rang out loudly as turbid white hair escaped the blood drenched figure's lips and slowly he raised up his head.

The right side of the eye was crimson red and right now it was burning with a crimson flame.

The other side of the eyes was a dull blue, and the calm in them was nothing short of chilling.

"How many more days left?" His thick voice boomed through the entire hall, and it was no different from the one of an adept depressed smoker who has never said a word in years.

"Just a night more..." The calm voice rang out and it was from none other than Sir Gerrald.

The one who had directed Nolan to the Kratos training room when he had first arrived here.