The Demon Monarch System

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Inside the Administration Hall of the Vermillion Night Academy, 

"Headmaster, headmaster!" Robyn exclaimed while bursting through the doors of Geneva's personal quarters. Under normal circumstances, the old man would have already been reprimanded. However, when she recalled that obscure that passed through the area just moments before, she allowed him to continue with his actions. After all, there was an extremely large chance that his behavior had something to do with it.

"What is it, Robyn?" Geneva questioned while lifting her head. Despite the sensation behind that ripple, Geneva didn't pay much attention to it. Due to the minuscule intensity, she chalked it up to being the byproduct of some minor clash between the world and a spirit.

Typically, this was an event that no one got involved with. If they did, there was a chance that they would face a backlash in addition to an even worse restriction on their Spirit. Hence, this was a gamble no one was willing to take. Be that as it may, the information Robyn disclosed next made Geneva frown.

"This situation is devolving and it is doing so far too fast! I'm not sure what the cause due to my lack of investigation, but I am sure it was more important to alert you of my findings!" Robyn exclaimed. He then performed hand gestures before poking the air and gliding his fingers outwards.

Due to his actions, a screen made from essence appeared before Geneva. It then relayed to her the events that took place inside the spiritual mines connected to Astarat's Spiritual Veins. During the time that Astarat's will was active, the area of the Spiritual Veins was always unstable.

This was due to the absence of Astaraya's control over them. Without her in place, the integrity of the veins continued to falter. This was another reason that she seldom appeared and only did so when there was an appearance of a new Spirit. Especially one that possessed monstrous potential and/or strength. 

"The decay you warned me of...it has hastened," Geneva voiced as she watched the images on the screen in real-time. Compared to before when he posed the issue in the presence of Apollo, the situation became exponentially worse. At first, it was no more than a meager 0.5% that experienced corruption.

However, the current situation showed that the corruption value had skyrocketed to as much as 4%. Another thing to note was that the previous corruption was over the course of more than one month, whereas the current value was achieved in less time.

As Geneva became privy to this information, her expression became grim, "If the corruption continues at this pace...without a doubt, we're en route for a catastrophe. This may even call for an emergency council. Besides me, I'm sure the other headmasters are aware of the situation as well."

"I believe so as well. Furthermore, the increased speed makes me conclude that something worse than a Disaster-Grade Terror will be born. Perhaps, we may even catch sight of something that brings the end of us all as we know it," Robyn responded with an even grimmer tone. His current outlook on the situation was bleak. 

On the other hand, Geneva thought differently, "No, something must be causing this. If it were the terror's that we should be worried about, we would have received reports of increased activity at the Catastrophe Line ages ago. The lack of a warning means that the situation there is still manageable," she said.

Regardless of how dire Robyn felt the matter was, Geneva was confident in her intuition. The Terror's couldn't be the only source of this anomaly, something much stronger, much more terrible had to be the root cause of this incident.

Thus, she leaned forward on her hands and pondered the situation, 'What is different compared to all of the other years? Unlike the rest, there is a potential Supreme Child. At the same time, a Supreme Child hasn't been seen since the first invasion of the Terrors. Moreover, this Supreme Child is odd. According to the information I've gathered, a record of the techniques he uses can't be found on this plant. Like Irauk, his origins are questionable.'

'Then again, his family is also his alibi. They have sworn that he was born by two humans of this world, then why do I feel this unsettling feeling? Even if I wish to investigate him, where would I begin and what would I investigate?' Geneva thought silently while looking in the direction of the ripple's origin.

As she watched, her eyes widened. An even stronger ripple was hurtling right towards her. This time, she had to actively defend the academy by utilizing some of her aura that hadn't been touched in numerous years. By the time the ripple passed her position, her countenance had already paled.

"There...is something wrong. These ripples, I've felt this feeling before. Don't tell that boy...did he succeed in summoning a Spirit? What type of Spirit is this?" Geneva muttered while using the desk to brace herself.

Conversely, Robyn's jaw dropped. "That's the SOURCE! THIS IS IT! I know where the corruption is coming from, this energy carries the same signature as the corruption, it is just many times worse! Now that we know the issue, we need to deal with it with haste!"

Unfortunately, his enthusiasm died down. Another ripple bombarded them and this time, it was up to Robyn to do something. Without hesitation, he activated a portion of the Academy's defensive formation.

To resist the aftershock of Ragna and Fuhrer's fight, nearly 10% of the formation reserves were depleted.

Left with no other choice, Geneva left her position, "Although it is ill-advised, I have to go witness what is happening. If anything is to happen, I'll allow you to invoke your Vice-Headmaster position, Robyn. In the meantime, placate any discord that may arise from the continuous raucous caused by the fluctuations."

Robyn agreed to her instruction while watching 2 dark violet wings of feathery flames appear on her back. With one flame, she shot out the window behind her at lightning-quick speeds.

----

At the same time, on the Catastrophe Line,

Both Suren and Valerie's eyes widened as they watched an odd scene unfold before their very eyes. Until now, there was never a point where they found countless Terrors roaring in unison. The soundwave from their roars melded as one as they seemed to be focused on one thing—the ripples that accompanied Fuhrer and Ragna's battle.

Unlike the rest who resisted the ripple, the Terrors welcomed it. The ripple attuned with their roars as they absorbed the residual energy it carried. However, some absorbed far too much and exploded on the spot. Luckily, they were beings that possessed intelligence as well.

When they felt they had reached their limit, one by one they ceased their roars. But, the benefits that came from their actions were already solidified. Nearly all of the Terrors present at the Catastrophe Line received a boon to their strength.

It was so much so that Suren witnessed as his spear-wielding Spirit, Ascalon, stated to display difficulty coping with the situation. It had to be known, as of right now, his Spirit was a bonafide Heroic Spirit. Typically, he didn't have an issue battling against a hundred opponents at once.

Yet, just the 10 Terrors he was currently dealing with seemed to be enough to now fight him to a standstill where neither side experienced an upper-hand.

"Something is amiss, why are the Terror growing stronger out of nowhere. Furthermore, their deathly aura is solidifying," Valerie muttered with a small frown. She raised her staff and chanted a spiritual piece that caused two light rays to fall upon both Suren and Ascalon.

As a result, their following attacks grew stronger. Being as she was the strongest support to ever be birthed from the Crux until Odessa, her supportive abilities were top-notch. For a set period of time, she was able to ceaselessly bolster one's battle power. On the flip side, her power caused a great burden on the person she focused on.

This was especially true if their Body Cultivation wasn't up to par. However, being the Golden Child of the Dongguang, doubt in Suren's cultivation was something that didn't exist. In fact, his potential was so great that for one period in time, the people thought him to be a Paragon hidden by the Dongguang.

Although it was never disproved, the fact that he didn't use any of his time to familiarize himself with other powers, they stopped pursuing the matter. A Paragon who didn't form ties to exploit their power was useless in their eyes. 

"Something is amiss, and we need to understand the intricacies of the issue," Valerie stated while standing next to Suren with her hand on his back.