"Let the massacre begin," Elara whispered to himself, a wicked smile forming on his lips.

He had done so much to reach this moment.

The kidnapping of students.

The horrible experiments on them.

Misinforming Lortell, making her leave the academy to search for her father.

Stealing the demons’ resources.

Kidnapping the Red Dragon Queen’s son.

It was all his doing.

From the very beginning, he had planned everything.

For 150 years, he had worked in the shadows, preparing for this exact moment. And now… finally, his patience had paid off.

------------

THUMP!.....

A golden lightning bolt shot down from the sky, striking the ground with an earth-shaking force.

It crashed into the academy—or at least, what was left of it.

The grand academy had already been destroyed during the fierce battle between Lilith and the Red Dragon. Only the basement remained intact, hidden beneath the ruins.

But—

BAM!

As the lightning struck, the earth trembled violently.

The impact was so strong that the basement collapsed in on itself, the ground caving in like a sinkhole. A huge cloud of dust and debris rose into the air.

For a moment, everything was silent.

But then—

A figure shot up from the buried ruins, rising into the sky like a comet.

Blinding divine light surged around him, illuminating the battlefield.

He hovered above the ground, sitting cross-legged in mid-air as if gravity had no hold on him. His eyes were closed, his expression calm.

Floating before him was a swirling sphere of purple liquid energy, pulsing with a strange, mysterious power.

With inhuman speed, he moved his hands, pouring valuable resources into the sphere. His arms blurred, moving so fast that they created the illusion of four extra hands working alongside him.

But the most shocking thing—

He looked exactly like Principal Elara.

An identical face.

The same long dark-elf ears.

The same powerful aura.

And yet, this wasn’t him.

This was his clone.

The real Elara narrowed his eyes, his expression turning serious.

“I have to protect my clone at all costs,” he thought, his heart pounding.

“The refinement cannot be interrupted. If anything goes wrong, my 150 years of struggle… all my efforts… will be for nothing!”

He clenched his fists, his gaze burning with determination.

No matter what, he would not let anyone stop him.

Just as Elara turned away, a voice came from behind him.

"Mother...?"

It was a trembling, broken voice filled with pain.

Elara slowly turned back.

Kaelith was standing there, frozen in place. Her silver eyes were locked onto her mother’s lifeless body, lying in a pool of blood. Her face was pale, completely blank, as if her mind refused to accept what she was seeing.

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Then, her body started to shake.

"You...!" Her voice cracked with raw fury as her fists clenched so tightly that her nails dug into her skin. "Why... Why did you do this!?"

Her teeth ground together as her rage surged, her silver dragon aura beginning to leak out, making the air around her tremble.

Elara sighed, shaking his head. "There's not much time to explain, and even if I did—" His gaze turned cold. "You wouldn't remember anything anyway."

Without hesitation, he lifted his hand and pointed his index finger at her.

"Pan."

A sudden force struck.

Blood splattered everywhere.

Kaelith’s eyes widened in shock, her breath catching in her throat. She couldn’t even react.

For a moment, she felt nothing. No pain. No wounds.

Then she touched her belly.

It was fine. No injury. Not even a scratch.

But then—

Her heart nearly stopped.

If she wasn’t hurt… then whose blood was this?

Her gaze slowly moved forward, her pupils shrinking to tiny dots.

Maruti stood in front of her, her body swaying.

A massive hole was blown through her abdomen.

Blood gushed from the gaping wound, her organs torn apart.

She coughed violently, blood spilling from her lips as her body collapsed backward.

Before she could hit the ground, Kaelith rushed forward and caught her, carefully laying her down.

Tears streamed down Kaelith’s face as she clutched Maruti’s trembling hand. "Why... Why did you do that!?" Her voice cracked as she sobbed, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably.

Maruti let out a weak, painful chuckle.

"Don't misunderstand, lizard," she rasped, her breaths shallow. "I only saved you... because I don’t like owing favors."

More blood spilled from her lips.

She tried to laugh again, but her voice was barely a whisper now.

"I guess... I really cut out to be a tank... huh?"

And then—

She stopped moving.

Her eyelids didn’t flutter.

Her fingers didn’t twitch.

Her chest no longer rose and fell.

She was gone.

Kaelith’s breath hitched.

The rain continued to pour, washing away the blood. The whole battlefield was painted red, and yet everything was quiet.

No sounds of fighting. No screams.

Only the soft, rhythmic pattering of raindrops echoed through the silence.

Then, Kaelith's sorrow turned into pure, uncontrollable rage.

Her eyes burned red with fury as she gritted her teeth.

"YOU MOTHERFUCKER!"

She shot to her feet, her icy silver aura exploding outward, causing the very air to crackle. Her fists clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

And then—

She lunged forward, raising her fist to punch Elara straight in the face.

But before she could reach him—

"Time Cutting Edge."

Elara’s calm voice rang out as he waved his palm.

A ripple spread through the air.

Kaelith’s body suddenly froze in place.

Then—

Swish.

Her head separated cleanly from her shoulders.

For a brief second, her body stood still, her expression frozen in shock.

Then her head hit the ground.

A moment later, her body followed.

She was dead.

Elara looked down at her lifeless corpse and scoffed.

"Did you really think an immature dragon could match an S-rank?" He turned away, unfazed, as if killing her was nothing more than swatting a fly.

The rain continued to fall.

The massacre had only just begun.

As Elara walked through the battlefield, his gaze fell upon Vaelthara.

She stood there, frozen in shock, unable to process the devastation around her. Her hands trembled, her lips slightly parted, but no words came out.

Her mind was blank.

She had just witnessed Kaelith , Lilith died by his hands.

It was terrifying.

Elara’s piercing gaze locked onto her.

"What are you looking at?" His voice was cold and indifferent, as if she were nothing more than an insect.

Vaelthara’s body tensed.

She tried to move. She tried to run.

But then—

"Time Cutting Edge."

A sharp slicing sound filled the air.

Her head separated from her shoulders in a single, clean cut.

Her body collapsed onto the ground, lifeless.

She never even got the chance to scream.

Elara barely spared her a glance.

His eyes swept across the battlefield. Everything was in ruins.

The academy, the dorms, the training grounds—everything had collapsed.

The once beautiful trees surrounding the academy were now uprooted, their trunks snapped like twigs. The air was thick with dust and the metallic scent of blood.

Bodies lay scattered across the field, both human and monster alike.

The powerful creatures that once roamed this place—the Scorching Lava Snake, the monstrous Madam Eight Legs, and even the dangerous B-rank beasts—were all dead.

Only a handful of students had survived.

And yet, there was still one thing standing in his way.

Lightning.

Bolts of golden lightning rained down from the sky, crackling with immense power, preventing him from reaching his true goal.

His eyes narrowed.

His final objective was simple.

He needed to protect his clone.

That body was currently refining something precious—his Divine Rank Essence Stone.

Once the refinement was complete, Everything Will Be At Peace.

Without wasting any time, Elara flew toward his clone.

But then—

"Mountain Cutting Slash!"

A thunderous voice echoed across the battlefield.

A massive golden energy wave surged forward, cutting through the air like a blade.

It was fast. It was powerful.

But Elara barely glanced at it.

Raising his hand, he conjured a protective shield.

The golden slash struck the shield with a deafening impact—boom—but it failed to even leave a scratch.

His gaze slowly shifted toward the attacker.

Ethan.

Of course, it was him.

"You were right, Sir Gareth," Ethan said, his voice firm. "He really is the one behind all this!"

He transmitted the message through his mind.

But before he could continue, a voice echoed inside him, urgent and sharp.

"Why did you attack him? I told you to go for his clone first! Now it’s too late!"

It was Gareth.

"But—" Ethan hesitated.

But then—

"You pest!"

Elara's face twisted in irritation.

He waved his palm.

"Time Cutting Edge."

Swish.

Before Ethan could even react, his head was severed from his body.

His head hit the ground with a soft thud.

His lifeless body followed, collapsing onto the dirt.

Just like that…

The main protagonist of Free Life Fantasy.

The one who was supposed to rise, to fight against the Demon King one day…

Now lay motionless on the ground.

Dead.

Clearly dead.

Elara landed on the battlefield, his expression calm.

With a flick of his wrist, a massive teleportation formation appeared beneath him.

A brilliant pentagram magic circle glowed brightly, and five figures emerged from it.

Two women.

Three men.

Each of them clad in heavy armor, wielding powerful weapons.

All of them were Rank A warriors.

Elara looked at them with satisfaction.

"There are still teachers and students alive," he said, his voice steady. "They will figure out what’s happening soon and try to stop me."

He turned toward his clone, still sitting in meditation, refining the Divine Rank Essence Stone.

"Your job is simple—protect my clone until the refinement is complete."

The five warriors nodded, stepping into formation around the clone.

Elara exhaled slowly, then turned his gaze upward.

The sky had darkened.

A blazing red light shone above the academy, illuminating the battlefield in a crimson glow.

A bitter smile tugged at his lips.

"As for me," he murmured, his voice carrying a strange amusement. "It’s time to face the biggest threat."

The red light grew brighter.

And then—

Boom.

The academy’s final barrier—the strongest defense spell ever created—shattered into millions of pieces, crumbling like broken glass.

And through the broken remains, a figure descended.

Lortell Mariette.

She landed gracefully, her long platinum hair flowing behind her.

Her crimson eyes swept over the battlefield, scanning everything in an instant.

Her gaze landed on Lilith’s lifeless body.

Then on Maruti.

Then on Kaelith.

Then on Ethan.

All dead.

Her expression darkened.

And then—

She saw Elara’s clone.

Her sharp mind only needed one second to understand everything.

Elara smirked.

"Too late… too late, Lortell Mariette!" he roared, launching himself toward her like a streak of light.

Lortell’s red broadsword gleamed as she raised it high.

Her lips curled into a snarl.

"You’re dead meat, pointy ear!"

A wave of pure killing intent burst out of her.

A red death aura leaked from her body, as vast as an ocean, filling the battlefield with an overwhelming sense of doom.

Elara pulled out his own sword, its blade glowing with brilliant white light.

His aura exploded outward, clashing against hers.

Then—

They charged at each other.

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Don't panick... Don't panick.. Let me cook