He pulled out his comms device and flicked through the interface.
His finger hesitated for a second before tapping on Celia’s contact. The call rang several times before finally connecting.
“H… hic… hello?” Her voice was shaky, and barely above a whisper.
“…Celia?” Isaac blinked. “Are you crying?”
“N-no.”
He frowned.
That wasn’t a convincing ’no’ by any measure.
He wanted to say something comforting, ask her what happened, but time wasn’t on his side.
Too many people were dying, and the N’theris Serpent was still out there.
Every second wasted could mean another life lost.
“Celia, can I trust you?”
“What… hic… are you talking about, Isaac?”
“I know of a way to take down the N’theris Serpent. But I can’t do it alone. I need your help.”
There was silence on the other end.
The soft sound of her quiet sobs filled the gap, but she didn’t speak for a few long moments.
Then, finally, her voice returned, steadier this time.
“Where are you?”
“Aeternum University’s stronghold. I’ll wait for you near the teleportation plaza.”
About five minutes later, a strange cloud formed at the plaza.
The air rippled with tension as awakeners turned their heads and got ready for a fight.
They braced themselves, but their tension faded when Celia stepped through the mist and it vanished behind her.
She walked straight toward Isaac.
Her face was pale, her eyes red and swollen from crying. It was the first time he’d seen her without that usual cheerful smile.
The other awakened glanced between the two of them, whispering.
Something was off, and they could tell. They were stunned by this appearance of the Star Idol.
Before questions could start flying, Isaac turned to their team leader.
“I need to speak with Celia in private for a few minutes. Is that okay?”
The man eyed him carefully. “…Isaac, don’t go anywhere outside the stronghold, alright?”
“I won’t. You have my word.”
He knew the team leader had reason to worry.
With Celia’s teleportation ability, if Isaac chose to leave, no one could stop him.
And calling her here without warning definitely raised eyebrows.
Inside the stronghold, Isaac and Celia entered one of the smaller, unused offices.
As soon as the door shut, Celia turned around and activated a small spherical device she pulled from her bag. She placed it on the ground, and a faint ripple shimmered outward.
“This will block any listening or scanning attempts. Now tell me what you were talking about.”
Isaac nodded. “Yes. I really do have a way to kill the N’theris Serpent.”
“What do I need to do?” Celia asked immediately.
There was no hesitation, or suspicion in her voice.
She just accepted it because she believed in him.
Isaac had proved time and again of how reliable he was.
He let out a quiet breath. A small part of him relaxed.
But before he could speak again, Celia stepped closer. Her expression changed slightly.
“Isaac…”
Her voice was a whisper now.
“I know you’ve been hiding your strength. If you act now, if you use everything… the Governor Faction will start paying attention. Are you ready for that?”
She bit her bottom lip, unsure if she should even be saying it.
But she had to.
She wanted to know the answer to the question.
“They’ll be wary of you. If they think you’re more powerful than your records show, you’ll become a problem to them. Especially if they think you’re trying to rise above your current station. Are you really okay with that?”
Isaac looked at her for a moment, then said simply,
“I don’t think this is the time to hide my strength”
He didn’t say that he needed survivors for his future plans, or that he wanted the awakeners to live because he intended to become their Lord one day.
That wasn’t something he could say. After all, while he was about to help others out of the kindness of his heart, he still needed to think of how this decision could be used in his favor.
It made him a calculative person.
But Isaac would rather be calculative than be a naïve person who got taken advantage of by others.
And there were other reasons to help too.
The Vice Principal was on the battlefield. She had helped him many times. If she got injured gravely, it would weigh on him.
And that was reason enough.
Celia stared at him in silence. Her lips parted slightly, and she looked like she was about to say something, then stopped.
“…Thank you,” she said softly.
Her voice was filled with relief and gratitude.
It was as though the storm eating her from the inside had finally subsidized.
“For helping me in defeating the N’theris Serpent, and for saying that this isn’t the time to hide our strength. Thank you.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll become your Lord Subject after this ends,” she added with a smile.
She looked ridiculous, carrying a bright smile with puffed eyes.
But somehow that made her shine even more.
Isaac blinked, surprised. He hadn’t expected that from her. But he just nodded and smiled.
“Alright,” he said. “I’ll tell you what I need you to do—”
…
Eleanor POV
Her breathing was rough.
Her hands trembled slightly as she wiped the blood off her cheek.
Far behind her, scattered through the ruins, were countless awakeners.
Most of them were wounded, and could no longer fight.
The mages were mentally exhausted. Even though Isaac’s grains had been refilling their mana, it didn’t stop the mental strain of continuous spellcasting.
The healers weren’t faring much better.
They tried to keep everyone going, but the number of people they could treat had long been surpassed.
Eleanor scanned the field again.
In the middle of the chaos stood the N’theris Serpent.
It had taken damage. A lot of it. But it stood tall and proud, like it barely mattered. Some of the Naga fighters had died too, but that didn’t slow the creature down.
Right now, both sides—human and naga—were working together out of necessity.
It was a strange sight.
Human healers treated summoned Naga beasts, while Naga warriors protected wounded human fighters.
They all looked grim, exhausted, and barely holding on.
“H-how many times do we have to kill it again?” Kaela asked weakly, slumping beside her.
Blood was streaked across her arm.
“Four,” Eleanor replied.
Kaela bit her lip, but even that looked weak. She didn’t have strength left to properly grimace.
“When’s the Saintess getting here? You said she could stop the resurrection.”
“She is on her way.”
Her grip tightened on her blade.
Alice hadn’t shown all her abilities to Sanctum of Masters.
But Eleanor, thanks to her years of wisdom, knew about the skills of the Solar Dragon Bloodline.
Alice could suppress resurrection of others with her abilities.
That was the only way they could defeat the N’theris Serpent.
Trying to kill it nine times was impossible.
’Catherine should have brought Alice back already.’
’It seems they have encountered a problem on their way back, and that’s why they haven’t returned yet.’
“Just hold on a little longer,” she told to Kaela.
Then she raised her gaze and stared directly at the N’theris Serpent.