The academy had become a battlefield.
Fire burned across broken corridors while alarm bells echoed through the night endlessly. Smoke covered the sky above the academy, turning the moon blood red.
Students ran in fear.
Teachers shouted commands desperately.
Ghost soldiers flooded through shattered barriers like living shadows.
And standing above the destroyed courtyard—
McLone watched calmly.
Like a queen observing war.
Her silver-white hair moved gently in the cold wind while dozens of shadow soldiers surrounded the academy grounds behind her.
Daniel stood frozen near the academy stairs.
His chest still hurt from everything she had revealed.
The academy.
The chamber.
The Ghost War.
The Perfect Vessel.
Nothing felt real anymore.
Mary grabbed his arm tightly.
"Daniel, focus!"
Another explosion shook the academy.
Part of the eastern wall collapsed instantly.
Students screamed.
Ghost creatures rushed through the opening.
Teachers immediately engaged them, magic flashing across the battlefield violently.
But something felt wrong.
These enemies were too strong.
Even teachers were struggling.
David leaned against the broken pillar nearby, breathing heavily. The dark marks on his arm had spread further now, crawling slowly toward his neck.
Yet despite his condition—
he kept staring toward the sky.
"They're coming…"
Mary looked at him sharply.
"What?"
David's voice trembled.
"Something worse."
Then—
The night sky cracked.
BOOOOOOM!
A massive black rift opened behind McLone.
The entire academy courtyard shook violently.
Everyone looked upward in horror.
Another rift opened.
Then another.
Three giant shadow gates floated above the battlefield.
Even the ghost soldiers stopped moving.
Silence spread.
Then footsteps echoed from inside the portals.
Slow.
Heavy.
Terrifying.
The first figure stepped out.
A tall warrior covered in black armor, carrying a massive chained blade across his shoulder. Ghostly flames burned around the chains wrapped across his arms.
The second figure appeared beside him.
A woman wearing a cracked white mask while holding a long silver spear glowing with pale energy.
The third one floated instead of walking.
Long black robes.
Dozens of floating blades circling around him silently.
The air itself became heavy.
Students backed away instantly.
Even teachers looked terrified now.
Mr. Stone's expression darkened.
"The Courted…"
Mary whispered:
"What are they?"
McLone smiled faintly.
"The highest soldiers of the Ghost Court."
The chained warrior slowly looked around the destroyed academy.
Then laughed deeply.
"So this is the prison?"
The masked spearwoman pointed her spear toward the students below.
"We should end this quickly."
The floating man remained silent.
But the blades around him slowly aimed downward.
At the academy.
At everyone.
Daniel felt chills run down his spine.
These enemies were completely different.
Stronger.
Deadlier.
McLone stepped forward calmly.
"Find the Vessel."
Instantly the ghost soldiers moved again.
The battlefield exploded into chaos.
The chained warrior jumped from the sky directly into the courtyard.
BOOOOOOM!
The ground shattered beneath him.
Several teachers were thrown backward instantly.
The masked woman moved like lightning through the battlefield, her spear cutting through magical barriers effortlessly.
The floating man raised one hand.
Dozens of black blades shot downward.
Students screamed.
Then—
A wall of ice exploded upward.
CRASH!
The blades stopped instantly.
Everyone turned.
Zoya stood near the academy entrance, breathing hard, one hand raised toward the sky.
Ice spread across the ground beneath her feet.
"Noah!" she shouted.
A massive stone barrier rose beside her immediately.
Noah stepped forward calmly, holding the collapsing defense line together while students escaped behind him.
Felix rushed through the smoke next.
Electric sparks burned around his fists.
"MOVE!"
He slammed directly into two ghost soldiers, sending them crashing through broken walls instantly.
Lucy followed behind him, glowing light surrounding her hands as she protected injured students.
Lily appeared near the second floor balcony, quickly guiding trapped students toward safer corridors.
"The west hall is blocked! Go downstairs!"
Mary looked around in shock.
Everyone was fighting now.
The academy war had truly begun.
Then Daniel realized something.
All eight of them—
were now standing on the battlefield together.
Daniel.
David.
Mary.
Felix.
Lucy.
Lily.
Zoya.
Noah.
McLone noticed it too.
Her pale eyes narrowed slightly with interest.
"How fascinating…"
The chained warrior suddenly attacked again.
His massive blade crashed downward toward a group of students.
Felix immediately jumped forward.
Electricity exploded around him.
BOOOOM!
The impact blasted Felix backward across the courtyard.
Lucy screamed:
"FELIX!"
But Felix forced himself back up, grinning painfully.
"Okay… now THIS is a fight."
The warrior laughed loudly.
"Interesting human!"
Meanwhile the masked spearwoman rushed toward Mary and Daniel at terrifying speed.
Mary barely reacted in time.
"Daniel!"
Black energy burst from Daniel's arm instinctively.
CLANG!
The spear stopped inches from his face.
The masked woman stepped back slightly.
Then tilted her head.
"The Vessel already reacts…"
Daniel stared at his own hand.
Dark energy flickered around it uncontrollably.
The whispers r⁴eturned instantly.
Louder.
The chamber below the academy was reacting again.
David suddenly screamed in pain.
Everyone froze for a moment.
The dark marks on his body glowed violently.
His eyes widened in horror.
"They opened it…"
Mr. Stone turned sharply.
"The seal?!"
Deep below the academy—
something roared.
The entire ground trembled violently.
McLone smiled slowly.
"Finally."
Mary looked terrified.
"What's happening now?!"
McLone raised one hand toward the academy beneath them.
"The prison door is breaking."
Then she looked directly at Daniel again.
"And the Vessel has arrived."
The floating Courted member suddenly attacked.
His black blades stormed across the battlefield like rain.
Noah immediately expanded the stone barrier while Zoya froze incoming shadows around them.
Lily jumped down from the balcony beside Mary.
"We can't hold them forever!"
Felix wiped blood from his mouth and laughed weakly.
"Then we hit harder."
Lucy quickly healed his injured shoulder.
"You're insane."
"Probably."
Daniel looked around desperately.
Everything was collapsing.
Students crying.
Teachers falling.
Ghost soldiers advancing endlessly.
And beneath all of it—
that ancient roar continued echoing underground.
McLone watched the chaos almost peacefully.
Then she whispered softly:
"The Ghost War has begun again."
The chained warrior lifted his blade toward the sky.
The masked spearwoman lowered her stance.
The floating blades surrounded the battlefield completely.
And in the middle of the burning academy—
the eight students slowly stood together for the very first time.
Broken.
Terrified.
But ready to fight.
A surviving teacher looked toward them in shock.
"The Great 8…"
The title spread quietly across the battlefield.
And above them—
another massive shadow began forming behind the clouds.
Far larger than anything before.
Watching.
Waiting.
Then the academy bells suddenly stopped ringing.
Complete silence fell for one horrifying second.
And from beneath the academy—
something ancient opened its eyes.