NOVEL NEXT Chapter 31: HIDDEN POWERS
By then, the top nobles... Selene, Evelis, and Nyssa—had already crossed the chamber, reaching the edge of the barrier.
A massive ice serpent coiled into being beside Selene, its glacial body glinting with killing intent, ready to strike. Evelis' eyes glimmered with that cold, golden light as both of his arms flared, wind and mana surging around him like a storm. Nyssa's own mana spilled green verdant from her palms, filling the chamber with the sharp scent of life magic.
They were seconds away from unleashing their attacks...
But what they saw stopped them.
The skeletal beast inside the barrier wasn't moving.
It was frozen in mid-attack, its claw still raised, and skull tilted at an unnatural angle as though someone had pressed pause on its very existence.
The three nobles hesitated, exchanging glances.
None of them had acted yet. None of them had cast a spell.
It was only Miyu who had seen it.
Still on top of Eran, her body hovering just above his, she could feel his chest rising calmly beneath her palms. She had seen it happen, those eyes of his, that deathly calm stare... It was as though a crushing weight fell upon the beast, freezing it where it stood.
Her own eyes widened, disbelieving.
"…You…" she breathed, but the word barely left her mouth.
Beneath her, Eran's faint smirk curved deeper, his eyes glinting with quiet amusement. He tilted his head toward her.
"Finish it," he murmured, with a low voice
For a moment Miyu couldn't move, couldn't think. Her cheeks burned crimson as their eyes locked, his expression so annoyingly calm it made her heart pound against her ribs.
THEN... with a
A single Motion...
VVRROOOOOOOOOOMMMM!
A massive violet circuit flared into existence behind her, humming with power as it locked directly onto the skeletal beast.
Still keeping her gaze locked on Eran.
BOOM!
The circuit unleashed its full power.
A violent surge of mana erupted upward, smashing into the skeleton's frozen form. Its frame was torn apart piece by piece, splintered bones shattering like glass and scattering midair before dissolving into the mana-soaked void as silence crashed back into the air.
For a second, the entire chamber was silent.
Then the dust settled.
The field was empty again, the threat completely erased.
The boy who had been knocked to the floor earlier sat frozen, his jaw hanging open. The other nobles outside the barrier just stared, their whispers rising in frantic waves.
"Did she just...?"
Selene, Evelis, and Nyssa were still standing at the edge of the barrier, their summoned magic still glowing faintly, but none of them moved.
The silence that followed was deafening.
No one dared to breathe.
The shattered dust of the massive skeleton still floated midair, scattering like glowing ash.. proof of the impossible. The hall, moments ago filled with fear, was now drowned in shock.
Selene's Ice Serpent loomed tall behind her, its draconic head snarling silently, icy mist rolling from its fangs. Evelis's golden eyes glimmered like twin suns, mana still swirling around his hands, while Nyssa's palms bled verdant green, her circle of life-magic pulsing with power.
But none of them attacked.
They were all frozen staring.
Miyu's chest rose and fell sharply as she remained straddling Eran. Her cheeks burned crimson, her eyes glassy with a mixture of rage and something she couldn't name.
She knew.
She saw what he did.
Her throat tightened as if words were caught there. She scrambled up from him, still flushed to the tips of her ears.
"H-huh… I..I… I didn't—"
Her words tumbled out, half-formed, before she bit her lip and turned her face away, almost growling at herself.
Eran only smirked. The kind of smirk that said yes, you saw right. Slowly, he pushed himself up onto one elbow, scratching his head casually as if nothing had just happened.
"Uh-huh… ehhh… ha. Ha. Hah!"
The little laugh left his lips lazily, enough to make Miyu's cheeks flare again.
The three nobles didn't move. Their eyes locked on the pair like hunting beasts assessing prey or perhaps deciding if what they had just witnessed was dangerous.
Then the boy on the floor gasped first, a loud, sharp intake of breath that seemed to snap everyone back to reality.
"What the...?"
He stared at the Ice Serpent behind Selene, its massive head nearly brushing the barrier ceiling, a draconic maw frozen in place, fangs glistening with frost.
Miyu's head snapped toward it next. Her pupils shrank.
This was her first time seeing the Professor like this, her Ice Serpent fully summoned, its killing intent radiating through the chamber like a blizzard.
"Ehhhhhhhnnnn…."
The small sound slipped out of her throat, almost a whimper.
Even Eran's eyes widened slightly as he rose to his feet, brushing dust off his shirt. His smirk faded for just a moment as he took in the sight.
"So… the title wasn't just for show after all…"
Then, in the corner of his vision his system flared.
[ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION! ]
{SCAN. }
INITIALIZING…
Name: Selene Nightveil
Title: Ice Serpent
Race: Human
Level: Rank lll (Grade C)
Mana: 10,000 / 15,000
Hidden Affinity: +12
Bound: Potential Harem 100%
Eran's lips curved again into that knowing smirk, quieter this time, but sharper.
So she wasn't just a professor with influence.
This was the true power of her form.
He straightened as he brushed the last bit of dust from his sleeve, straightening with the kind of lazy confidence that made it look as if nothing in this world could bother him.
So…my Selene also has this power within her, he mused silently, that dangerous glint flickering in his eyes. Only he could know what that smirk really meant.. Good. It would've been boring otherwise.
Beyond the barrier, gasps rippled through the hall like a sudden storm. Nobles who thought they'd seen everything were frozen, staring. Selene, Evelis and Nyssa—just a heartbeat ago, they had been standing outside with them. Now, in a blink, they were inside the barrier, mana flaring like beacons, standing protectively near the students.
And Selene's Ice Serpent...
The nobles had heard of it, whispered stories in dimly lit halls, but this was the first time they saw its full form. The massive serpent's icy breath turned the air into mist, its glowing eyes locking on anything that dared move. It was not just a summon. It was wrath made flesh.
Evelis moved first, his golden glow fading back to a soft shimmer as his eyes returned to their calm, piercing hue. He raised his hand, and with a mere gesture, the barrier around them fractured like glass, dissolving into shimmering dust that sank into the floor.
Nyssa stepped forward, her verdant mana retracting into her palms like living vines retreating into the earth.
"Are you hurt?" she asked softly, her voice smooth but threaded with a subtle authority that made even the other nobles fall silent.
Miyu stood near Eran, still flushed crimson, lips pressed into a thin line. She said nothing, only gave the slightest nod, refusing to let her pride slip any further.
Nyssa's gaze shifted between them, her sharp green eyes narrowing just slightly.
"You'll follow me," she said, tone clipped. "Both of you...You need to be healed"
Eran only laughed, scratching the back of his head, not nervously, not sheepishly, but with a kind of infuriating amusement that made Miyu's ears burn hotter.
"Uh… ha… ha… hah."
And then, like a whisper from the heavens, the system's voice purred in his mind.
[ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION! ]
{SCAN. }
INITIALIZING...
Name: Miyu Valarene
Age: 19
Race: Human
Ability: Cursed Bloom
Mana: 6,000 / 10,000
Rank: Rank ll (Grade D)
Conquest Level: 70%...
Eran's smirk sharpened, his eyes glinting with something that made Miyu's stomach knot as she glanced at him, only for her face to flush deeper before she snapped her head away with a sharp, indignant Hmph!
Perfect.
Around them, the tension broke as whispers turned to murmurs, murmurs to outright excited chatter. Nobles marveled at the unleashed power of Selene's Ice Serpent, at the devastation Miyu had wrought,