Born In Ashes: The Enigma

"What just happened?" Azrael frowned as he found himself back in the space where he had first appeared when he entered the tower.

The moment the ninth level started, he had felt a sudden sense of danger, and before he could even react, he was beheaded by someone.

(You have completed 8 levels of the Tower of Trials)

As he was still thinking about what had just occurred, the mechanical voice of the tower echoed through the darkness.

(You are the first one to clear 8 levels on their first try)

(Your reward has been increased)

(Calculating your rewards...)

(You have received 200 academic credits)

(You have received a low-level skill card)

(You have received a training ground card)

Azrael raised an eyebrow when he heard that he was the first one to clear eight levels on his first try.

But when he heard the reward of 200 academic credits, his eyes lit up with joy.

According to what Ashara had told him, most things in the academy required credits.

From acquiring a skill or Essentia Art to using the training ground—everything required academic credits, including entry into Eonrift as well.

If he wanted to enter the true Eonrift—the one that wasn't just a trial ground, he would need five hundred credits.

Now, he hadn't even entered the academy yet, and he had already received 200 credits.

'Just three hundred more credits and I'll be able to enter Eonrift again...' Azrael thought to himself as two square-shaped cards materialized before him.

Azrael caught the two cards and saw that one of them was labeled "Low-Level Skill Card," while the other was labeled "Training Ground Card."

He thought for a moment and came to the conclusion that he would probably be able to use them after officially joining the academy.

Once he grabbed the cards—

(You will be sent out of the Tower of Trials)

The voice of the tower echoed once again, and his body began to disappear from the tower.

****

At the top of the Tower of Trials, Mira was staring blankly at the holographic screen hovering in front of her.

"This..." She pointed at the screen with a finger, wanting to say something, but no words came out of her mouth.

In the end, she took a deep breath and—

"What the fu*k?" She cursed aloud. "How can he pass eight levels and even kill two elite elves who were far above his level, when he had just reached the class level and hadn't even fully developed his power system?"

She turned to look at Ashara and asked in a serious voice, "Witch, what was that purple wind?"

Ashara shrugged her shoulders and replied in a calm voice, "It was his natural attribute."

As for what kind of attribute it was, she didn't say anything more.

Mira fell silent upon hearing Ashara's words. She thought for a few seconds before speaking again.

"You know that the first six levels of the Tower of Trials were specially modified for the entrance assessment, and from the seventh level onwards, the difficulty spikes to an entirely different level because those levels aren't meant for people taking the entrance assessment, right?"

Ashara nodded at Mira's words as she was well aware of this fact.

"Did you tell him about this?"

"Even if I told him that only the first six levels were modified for the entrance assessment, it wouldn't have changed anything. He would've still tried to test his limits."

In fact, Ashara knew that Azrael hadn't even used everything he had during the fight.

Not to mention his Tyrant's Intent, which he could only use for a second before running out of spiritual power—he didn't even use his class skill, Absolute Decree, during the fight.

If he had used his class skill, he could have passed the eighth level without even breaking a sweat.

However, he could only use this skill once a week, so unless absolutely necessary, it was wise not to waste it—since that skill could save his life in a truly dangerous situation.

Mira and Ashara looked at the screen as Azrael stepped into the ninth level and was instantly killed by a level 25 Insectoid—a race similar to insects.

"If the environment hadn't shifted into a dark one, he wouldn't have died so easily," Ashara muttered in a low voice as she saw the level 25 enemy instantly defeat Azrael before he could react.

Mira didn't say anything and simply stared at the now blank screen.

She remained silent for a while before finally speaking.

"Witch, how about you let him become my student?"

Ashara frowned at Mira's words. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what I just said... I want to teach him personally."

"You are not even a wind power user. What do you want to teach him?" Ashara turned to look at her. "Besides, I don't think there's anything like that in the Slayers Academy, where an instructor teaches only one student, right?"

"I am the vice principal here, so you don't need to worry about the rules. As for me not being a wind power user..." Mira looked at her with a smirk. "I've already lived for thousands of years. And even though I'm not a wind power user, I can still teach him better than even a Cosmic King or Cosmic Emperor who specializes in wind power."

Ashara didn't say anything upon hearing Mira's words, as she knew she was right.

Though Mira looked like someone in her early thirties, she had already lived for who knows how many years.

"Why do you want to teach him?" She asked after thinking for a moment.

"Because I have nothing else to do," Mira said with a shrug. "There haven't been any major conflicts with the monster race in the past few years, and I don't have much to do at the academy. I was already considering teaching a good seedling to relieve my boredom, and he's a perfect candidate."

"So you want to teach him just to pass the time?" Ashara asked with a frown.

"Don't misunderstand. Just because I want to teach him out of boredom doesn't mean I'll teach him anything half-baked." She paused and then added after a moment,

"In fact, there's another reason I want to teach him personally."

Ashara looked at Mira silently, waiting for her to continue.

Mira remained silent for a moment, and after taking a deep breath, she finally spoke in a low voice.

"I know about the legacy of a wind power user."