Chapter 25: Judgment and an Unwanted Gift
<hr>
We were in deep trouble.
No amount of winning fights, saving lives, or closing reality-tearing portals could change the fact that we had:
<ol>
<li>Left academy grounds without permission.</li>
<li>Engaged in an unsanctioned hunt.</li>
<li>Unleashed and then defeated a boss-level entity—which, in fairness, wasn''t entirely our fault.</li>
<li>Possibly attracted more Nullborn to the academy.</li>
</ol>
And now?
We were about to get yelled at.
<hr>
Facing the Instructors
The academy''s disciplinary chamber was cold, made of reinforced stone, lined with runes to suppress magic.
Iris, Emilia, and I stood in the center.
Across from us?
A row of very angry instructors.
At the head of the table sat Headmaster Alden Graves. His expression was unreadable, but the tension in the room could have crushed steel.
Instructor Vance sighed. "Let’s make this simple: What. Were. You. Thinking?"
Iris, to her credit, didn’t flinch. "We handled it."
Graves’ eyes sharpened. "That is not an answer."
Emilia swallowed. "We only wanted to investigate the mana surges…"
Selene, who was watching us with an odd mix of amusement and concern, raised a brow. "And instead, you found an ancient relic, awakened it, and summoned a Nullborn Harbinger?"
I shrugged. "When you say it like that, it sounds bad."
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Kaiden, standing at the side with his arms crossed, scoffed. "It was bad."
I sighed. "Okay. Maybe a little bad."
Graves exhaled slowly. "Under normal circumstances, students who violate academy protocol like this would face severe punishment."
Vance nodded. "Expulsion. Possibly even a mana restriction."
Iris tensed. Emilia palmed her skirt.
I stayed silent.
Because I knew there was a "but" coming.
Graves'' gaze lingered on me.
"But," he said, "you also prevented what could have been a disastrous incursion. You contained the threat before it spread into the academy."
Selene leaned forward, smirking. "Which means, technically… you did us a favor."
Vance pinched the bridge of his nose. "I hate technicalities."
<hr>
The Sentence
Our punishment was severe, but not unbearable.
<ol>
<li>
One month of restricted movement.
<ul>
<li>No leaving academy grounds unless on official missions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Additional combat training.
<ul>
<li>Because clearly, we weren’t getting into enough fights already.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>
Direct supervision from an instructor.
<ul>
<li>Which meant one of them was going to be babysitting us for the foreseeable future.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ol>
Oh, and—
<ol start="4">
<li>A formal record of misconduct.
<ul>
<li>Which would make things… complicated.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ol>
"You''re on thin ice," Graves warned. "One more reckless act, and there will be consequences."
I exhaled. "Understood."
We weren’t expelled.
But we weren’t free, either.
<hr>
The System’s Reward
That night, I collapsed onto my bed, exhausted.
And of course—
The system chose that moment to act.
<blockquote>
[SYSTEM REWARD UNLOCKED.]
[NEW EQUIPMENT ACQUIRED: LIVING RELIC – ABYSSAL HELM.]
</blockquote>
I blinked. "Wait, what?"
A dark mist swirled above me, solidifying into a helmet of obsidian metal, its surface etched with moving runes.
Then—
It spoke.
"Greetings, master."
I groaned.
Nyx chuckled. "Another mouth to feed. How delightful."
Noctis grinned. "Ooooh, I like him already."
Umbra just snickered.
I sighed, staring at the helm. "Let me guess. You''re alive?"
The helm hummed. "Indeed. And I am here to serve. Or… perhaps command?"
Oh, great.
I had another problem.
And this one sat directly on my head.