The fog surged, crawling up the man’s legs, and twisting around his body like living chains. Shadowy hands formed from the mist, clawing at him, binding him in place. He struggled, but it was useless. The fog clung to him like a spider’s web ensnaring its prey.

He couldn’t move, couldn’t even scream as Ric’s crimson eyes bore into his soul, cold and merciless. A chill ran down his spine, deeper than the air’s freezing touch. Panic clawed at him, his thoughts spiralling into chaos. “If this goes on… I—I’ll die. He’ll kill me!”

Summoning the last shred of courage in his crumbling mind, he let out a desperate cry. “Break!”

The room trembled violently. The air seemed to crack, sharp lines forming in the space around them. The fog recoiled as the world itself fractured like a broken mirror. Everything shattered—walls, ceiling, even the ground beneath their feet—into jagged pieces, collapsing into a blinding void.

Ric’s eyes snapped open. His chest heaved with ragged breaths as he sat up abruptly, the remnants of the dream still clinging to him like a heavy fog. His gaze darted around the unknown room, painted full white until it landed on the man—the same one who had threatened Yota—lying unconscious beside him.

Ric’s instincts kicked in before his mind could catch up. His eyes widened, and with a sharp snap of his wrist, he conjured a barrier, slamming it down toward the man with unrelenting force.

Suddenly, the student council members rushed at him and stopped him in his tracks, capturing his hands before it hit the man, threatening with a sword on his neck.

“Stop right there, this was an exam and it's over. student Ric” Silvia exclaimed, her sword near Ric’s throat, Threatening to cut him as Leon took the unconscious man away.

But, Ric was still out of it, even when Rudd and Raon held him, he didn’t stop. His crimson eyes burned with an intensity that made the air feel heavier. Even as he got slightly cut and blood trickled down his neck, he rose to his feet, dragging them with him as if their weight meant nothing.

Silvia took a step back, her chest heaving as she watched Ric move with unrelenting force. “Has he lost his mind?” she muttered, her voice laced with disbelief. She glanced at the thin line of blood trailing down his neck and tightened her grip on her sword. “If I hadn’t stepped back just now, his throat would’ve been slit!”

Shaking her head, she called out sharply, “We don’t have a choice—use force! Rudd, Raon, suppress him with your aura! I’ll cut off his air supply with magic.”

“Roger that!” the two replied in unison.

They used aura, their body shinning, covered with a shimmering bright flame. Ric slowed down, but still didn’t stop, his immense strength left them speechless “How is this guy so strong?!” Rudd yelled, his surprise evident. “His class must be a knight or a tank, there is no other way to explain this strength!” Raon groaned, struggling to hold Ric down.

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Silvia's voice rose in a steady chant, her magic weaving into the air. Around Ric’s face, the atmosphere wavered, thinning until it disappeared entirely. He gasped, his breaths coming shorter and more laboured as a vacuum formed. His movements faltered, slowing. Their plan was working—he was weakening.

But then, an ominous red mist began to seep from Ric’s body, unfurling like tendrils of smoke. It slithered along the ground, unnatural and alive, inching closer to Silvia. The mist thickened, coalescing into grotesque, bloody hands that shot out with sudden speed.

“What the—?!” Rudd and Raon barely had time to react as the hands latched onto them from behind with their cold grip. Both of them were yanked backwards, their startled cries echoing in the tense air.

The mist spread toward Silvia, the crimson haze pulsing with malevolent intent. Desperation lit her eyes as she slashed at the misty hands with her sword. Each strike seemed to work momentarily—the hands faded under her blade—but they reappeared moments later, more determined than ever. Her breaths grew laboured, and her magic, strained by the constant attack, began to weaken.

Ric inhaled, the vacuum around him dissolving. Freed from the suffocating magic, his strength surged. The red mist expanded rapidly, its oppressive presence blanketing the room. Rudd and Leon stumbled, their limbs sluggish and heavy as if weighted by invisible chains. The council members could barely move; lifting their hands became a monumental effort.

Then it grew worse. The bloody haze thickened, sapping their strength with every passing moment. Standing became a trial; breathing, an ordeal. Words caught in their throats, unable to escape. The oppressive force pressed down harder and harder until even keeping their eyes open felt impossible.

Bloody hands emerged again, their cold, unrelenting grip tightening around Silvia, Rudd, and Leon’s necks. They gasped and clawed at the choking mist, but it offered no reprieve, constricting mercilessly. The crimson fog pulsed a sinister rhythm that seemed to mock their fading resistance.

Just as the last slivers of consciousness began to slip away, a voice cut through the suffocating haze like a blade. Deep and commanding, it swept through the atmosphere, undeniable in its power.

“You council members need to train more.”

Reinhardt’s words carried an unshakable authority as he stepped forward, undeterred by the crimson mist. His stride was steady, his expression calm yet firm. An orange aura began to radiate from him, swirling around his body before spreading outward in a vibrant fog.

The moment the orange mist touched the bloody haze, Ric’s malevolent power faltered. The red mist recoiled as if burning, shrinking from Reinhardt’s presence. Then, as if it had never existed, the crimson fog dissolved entirely, overpowered and erased by the sheer force of his aura.

Ric staggered, his body trembling under the oppressive force of Reinhardt’s aura. His legs buckled, and with a faint gasp, he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Reinhardt stopped, standing tall over Ric’s motionless form, his gaze sharp and assessing.

Reinhardt spoke after a moment of silence, his tone measured and authoritative. “Get this boy to meet me in my office after he wakes up. Take him to a healer for now. Go!”

Though exhausted and still catching their breath, the council members straightened instinctively at the command. “Yes, sir!” they replied in unison, their voices resolute despite their weariness.

Cautiously, they approached Ric, their movements careful and deliberate. Lifting him together, they carried him out of the room, their steps steady as they made their way to a healer. Reinhardt watched them leave, his expression unreadable, before turning his gaze back to the now-empty room with nothing but a barrier on the floor.