The ground beneath their feet already radiated heat as Instructor Theron paced before the assembled students, Inferno's claws clicking rhythmically against the scorched earth. The Crimson Fury Drake let out a low, rumbling growl, steam rising from its nostrils as if in anticipation.

"All of you fancy yourselves ready for combat?" The instructor barked. "Let me be perfectly clear—spirit combat isn't about flashy moves or textbook maneuvers. It's about violence, pressure, and speed."

He snapped his fingers, and a barrier of transparent spirit-glass shimmered into place around the field. Glyphs activated across the terrain—sigils of protection, suppression, and containment.

"We're starting with rapid deployment drills. Five-person teams. Your job is simple: move from Point A to Point B, extract a simulated objective, and return without getting 'killed.'" He gestured to a cluster of glowing spirit crystals embedded in the far wall.

"Obstacles include illusions, summoned threat constructs, environmental hazards… and," he grinned wickedly, "me."

Gasps rippled through the students.

"Yes, I will be on the field. Not full power, of course—Inferno and I will hold back. But if you're tagged, you're out. If your beast gets overwhelmed, it's out. If you panic… well, I'll make sure everyone sees it."

He clapped once. "Okay! Group yourselves into five."

The field was in chaos as students scrambled to form groups of five. Shouts overlapped, names were called out, and spirit beasts stirred restlessly as the pressure mounted.

Seria didn't hesitate. She grabbed Aston's sleeve and pulled him toward Rowan and Lyra.

"Us four, now. We move well together," she said, her tone crisp and instinctive.

Rowan was nodding in agreement when his gaze flicked across the field—and stopped.

A lone boy stood awkwardly near the far edge, shifting on his feet, eyes wide behind thick-rimmed glasses that kept sliding down his nose. He clutched something close to his chest—a pale spiral shell about the size of his palm, with glowing etch lines along its surface. Several other groups had already formed and ignored him completely.

The boy glanced around nervously, clearly too anxious to call out or step forward. His uniform was slightly wrinkled, his boots mismatched, and he had the overall look of someone more comfortable in a library than a battlefield.

Rowan waved his arms. "Kai! Over here!"

The boy blinked, startled, then hurried toward them, cradling the shell protectively.

"You know him?" Aston asked.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Roommate," Rowan replied, then lowered his voice. "Bit of a recluse. But he's brilliant. Knows more about spirit beast classifications than our entire dorm wing combined."

Kai stopped just short of the group, shifting his weight between his feet. "Um… hi. Sorry. I didn't want to intrude—"

"You're not," Seria said simply. "We need a fifth."

Lyra gave him a nod of greeting. "What's your beast?"

Kai held up the shell a little, suddenly a bit more comfortable when the topic shifted. "This is Shelldon. He's a Spiral Bastion Crabling. Not fast… but highly durable. Excellent for area control and reinforcement fields."

"Reinforcement?" Aston asked, intrigued as he sent an analysis request to Nova.

—

[Spirit Beast: Spiral Bastion Crabling]

[Type: Aquatic]

[Attribute: Water/Earth]

[Genus: Testulithex]

[Rank: 2-star]

[Potential: 7-star]

[Description: A compact, crustacean-like spirit beast known for its exceptional defensive capabilities. It moves slowly, using its thick forelimbs for minor attacks and ground reinforcement, but it excels when stationary, where it can generate barrier matrices for squad defense.]

[Skills:]

[Shellforge Wall: Deploys a hexagonal barrier field from its shell that can absorb moderate impact and elemental strikes.]

[Next skill will be unlocked at 3-star]

[Passive Skills:]

[Runic Shell Fortification: While stationary, gains increasing defense with each passing second, up to a set threshold.]

[Innate Skills:]

[Anchor Shell Protocol: The Spiral Bastion Crabling can temporarily root itself into the ground, massively increasing barrier strength and resistance.]

[Next skill will be unlocked at 5-star]

—

Kai pushed his glasses up, voice gaining momentum. "He can generate temporary barrier layers—hexagonal shell-patterned structures. They're flexible, and if channeled properly, can deflect both elemental projectiles and melee attacks. Not perfect against overwhelming force, but highly adaptable in tactical formations."

Rowan grinned. "Told you he was smart."

Instructor Theron's voice boomed again across the field. "Ten seconds to formation lock. If you're not in a group, too bad. You run solo."

"We're good," Seria confirmed, already pulling them into a huddle.

Kai hesitated for half a second—then stepped in, gripping his shell like a lifeline.

"Right," Aston said, glancing at the others. "Objective's simple. Get in, grab the crystal, get out.

Rowan, you handle cover. Seria, you're our middle guard. Lyra, flank. Kai…"

Kai swallowed. "Barrier support and fallback anchor. Got it."

The instructor announced to the class, "Time's up. You're Team One, Team Two…". He began pointing to groups of people, announcing their team numbers, until he reached Aston's group: "Team Nine", and proceeded counting to the last group.

"First one, Team One—GO!"

The first team surged forward into the trial zone—fog, flames, and fire-breath waiting ahead.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.