The air was still trembling from the chaos moments ago, yet now… everything froze.

Every student's eyes were locked upward—at the man floating calmly in the sky, holding back the two merging dungeon cores with a single hand each.

The white and red-blue-green lights struggled to fuse, but Zane Creed's grip was absolute.

And then—

Crack!

He effortlessly split them apart.

The entire chamber quaked as the unstable mana dissipated. One of the cores—the one in his left hand—shimmered violently before Zane simply clenched his fist.

Crshhhh!

The core shattered into countless fragments of crystal dust, scattering into the air like fading stars.

Maera's eyes widened.

He destroyed it just like that…!? she thought in disbelief.

The remaining crystal continued to float, now looking stabilized.

Zane descended slowly, landing on the shattered stone ground, his long coat swaying with the fading gusts of mana.

"Hello, guys," he said casually, purple eyes glinting faintly with calm authority.

Ron stepped forward, still catching his breath. "Professor Zane… h-how did you even get here?"

Zane tilted his head slightly. "I came through the door."

His lips curved faintly. "And I've come to save you all—and to capture the one behind this mess."

He pointed at the pile of shattered crystal shards at his feet.

But before he could continue—

"Professor! Behind you!" Maera shouted.

A crazed goblin, its body twisted and unstable from mana corruption, leapt toward Zane's back—screeching.

Yet before it even touched him, the creature turned to ash midair—disintegrating silently.

Zane didn't even look back.

"First," he said, brushing the dust from his coat sleeve, "let's take care of these nuisances."

He flicked his finger upward.

Instantly, every wild boar and goblin on the battlefield rose into the air, thrashing helplessly.

Gasps spread among the exhausted students as hundreds of monsters floated like lifeless puppets above them.

Then, Zane snapped his fingers.

BOOM—

All of them burst into red mist. But before a single drop of blood could fall, it vanished—disintegrated by a faint, invisible energy.

Silence.

The air was clean again. The battlefield, once chaos, was now calm and bright.

Zane looked around with that same faint smile. "Now," he said smoothly, "we can talk."

The students could only stare in disbelief.

Even Maera and Aurelian stood frozen, unable to find words.

Only Lia and Ron remained calm—they had seen this before.

Jax, sitting on the ground with his arm bleeding, muttered weakly, "What… what the hell did I just witness…?"

And for the first time since the dungeon dive began—

everyone in class Caelis truly understood their professor's strength.

Zane's eyes swept over the exhausted group, his tone softening.

"First," he said, raising his right hand slightly, "let's fix all of you."

Snap—

In that instant, a vast surge of emerald light spread across the ground.

Under every student—no matter how far—they each found a glowing green magic circle forming beneath their feet.

Gentle streams of healing light rose upward, wrapping around their bodies.

Cuts sealed themselves.

Bruises faded.

Bones aligned and knitted whole.

The fog of fatigue—both mental and physical—vanished in seconds, replaced by clarity and warmth.

Some students gasped, others simply stood frozen, unsure what to feel as strength returned to their limbs.

Even those who had collapsed moments ago were now standing upright, blinking in disbelief.

"Wha—" Jax began, but words failed him.

Lirael's eyes widened, her voice trembling.

"He… he cast this many healing circles at once…?"

Selene placed a hand over her heart, still feeling the lingering warmth of mana that wasn't her own.

Her lips parted slightly as she whispered,

"He's really strong…"

Zane, standing calmly amidst the fading glow, just smiled faintly.

"Good," he said, his tone light but steady. "Now that everyone's fine—let's deal with what's next."

Lia blinked, her pink aura faintly flickering around her as she stepped forward.

"What do you mean by that, Professor?" she asked cautiously.

Zane turned his gaze toward her, the faintest smile tugging at his lips.

"First," he said evenly, "you all tell me—why was there another dungeon core inside this place? You seem to know something about it."

His tone was calm, yet it carried quiet authority that made everyone straighten unconsciously.

Of course, Zane already knew the entire situation—but he wanted to hear it from them.

Selene stepped forward, brushing dust from her tattered uniform. Her eyes met Zane's, guilt flickering within them.

"It started when we separately found three strange crystals," she said softly. "A green one, a red one, and a blue one. At first, we thought they were just some special stones, but… later we realized they were shards of a dungeon core."

The others listened in silence as Selene continued, her voice steady despite exhaustion.

"We tried to contain them, but they kept resonating. Then, they… joined together." She clenched her fists. "After that, the merged core started join this dungeon's main core . And before it could fuse with the dungeon's main core—"

She looked up, relief mixing with disbelief.

"—you arrived, Professor."

Zane nodded slowly, eyes half-lidded in thought, though a faint glimmer of amusement played in his gaze.

"I see," he said softly. "You handled more than I expected."

Zane's expression grew faintly amused as he looked at Selene.

"You're wrong about one thing," he said.

Lirael blinked, still catching her breath. "Eh…? What do you mean, Professor?"

Zane clasped his hands behind his back, glancing up toward the fractured ceiling of the dungeon.

"The two dungeon cores weren't merging," he explained calmly. "They were clashing."

"Clashing?" Maera echoed.

Zane nodded. "In a single dungeon, there can only be one core. The core governs everything—its layers, monsters, structure, even how mana flows within it. Bringing another core into the same space…" He paused, his deep purple eyes narrowing faintly. "That's a recipe for disaster."

The students exchanged uneasy glances as Zane continued, his tone steady, teaching yet chilling.

"Those two weren't trying to become one—they were fighting for dominance. Each was trying to overwrite the other, to seize control of the dungeon itself. But since both cores were of equal strength…" He gestured toward the shattered remains of the crystals. "They couldn't overpower one another. Instead, they started destroying everything around them."

Selene frowned slightly, stepping forward. "Professor… you make them sound like they're alive."

Zane chuckled softly, shaking his head. "Not quite. Dungeon cores aren't sentient. But their nature—the instinct to dominate or be destroyed—is built into their very existence."

He turned his gaze back to the trembling walls, where faint white cracks still shimmered.

"You see, a dungeon is an extension of another world… or rather, a remnant of broken worlds. The dungeon core maintains the link between those fragments and this realm. Without it, that connection collapses."

The words sank deep. Some of the noble-born students widened their eyes—they had heard rumors of this, whispered by scholars and archivists. But for the commoners, it was terrifying new knowledge.

Zane looked at them all, voice quiet but carrying weight.

"And if that connection breaks while someone is still inside…"

Ron swallowed hard. "They'll die," he said grimly.

Zane's smile thinned. "Not just die." His gaze swept across them all. "Your body and soul would be erased completely. You wouldn't even leave behind a trace."

A cold silence fell.

The students felt a chill crawl down their spines—realizing just how close they had been to vanishing forever.

And at the center of it all, standing calmly amid the fading cracks and ruin—was Zane Creed, the reason they were still alive.

Lia stepped forward, her pink aura faintly flickering as she asked, "Professor… you said you came here to capture the ones behind all this—the ones who brought another dungeon core here?"

Zane smiled faintly, as if he'd been waiting for that question. "Ah, yes. About that."

He raised his hand lazily and pointed toward the far side of the chamber.

"Well, I already did."

Everyone turned—and a collective gasp rippled through the students.

In the corner, bound by glowing rune-forged chains, were five masked men, dressed in sleek, black assassin-like garb. Their faces were completely hidden, and intricate sealing runes covered their mouths, preventing even the faintest whisper of magic or sound.

They squirmed weakly, their eyes full of hatred—but they couldn't move an inch.

"They were… here the whole time…?" Lirael whispered, stunned.

Zane nodded casually, as if it were nothing worth making a fuss about.

"Yes. They were lurking around even before I entered this dungeon—tracking your classes,they are the responsible for the second dungeon core mess. Each of these four," he gestured toward the chained figures, "was tailing one of the four classes. And the one in the middle…" His tone darkened slightly. "Is their leader."

The students looked at one another in disbelief. How had they not sensed even a trace of them?

"They killed the entire surveillance team stationed by the academy," Zane continued, his expression flat now, almost unreadable. "The team's job was to monitor your progress and intervene if any of you were in danger. These people slaughtered them all after you guys and the surveillance team entered the dungeon. They were already in dungeon before you guys even entered."

A heavy silence followed.

Maera's fists clenched. "So that's why… no one came to help us…"

Selene's lips trembled, anger flashing in her exhausted eyes. "They… they were watching us this whole time."

Ron and Lia exchanged a look, both frowning deeply.

"We didn't even sense them," Ron muttered, his voice low with disbelief.

Zane turned slightly, hands behind his back once more, and smiled faintly.

"Of course you didn't," he said. "You couldn't sense them anyway."

The masked men trembled under his gaze—because they knew.

The moment Zane Creed had arrived… their fates were sealed.

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