Azriel watched in silence, standing with Jasmine and the instructors as they observed Celestina on the platform. She stood tall, gazing down at the mana core lying at her feet.
The same couldn't be said for the cadets.
The cadets erupted into cheers, celebrating Celestina's victory over the floor boss.
Even Lumine, Vergil, Yelena, and the three other cadets who helped were visibly elated.
It was an incredible feat Celestina had pulled off.
The cadets rushed to her side.
"You're not going to join them?"
Jasmine asked, her voice soft.
Azriel smiled at her question.
"Me? The one who contributed nothing on this floor, and when the leader personally asked for my help, I sent someone else in my place? Do I dare celebrate with them now?"
"If you put it that way…"
"My reputation as the delinquent prince would skyrocket."
A chuckle escaped his lips as he watched Celestina, overwhelmed by the crowd.
Her perfect image, cracking ever so slightly, was strangely satisfying to witness.
'This is... quite amusing.'
In the book, it had been Lumine, not Celestina, who defeated the floor boss.
Lumine had led the cadets, though not all had followed him.
Some hadn't believed he was worthy of being their apex.
But now, with Azriel as the apex stepping aside to give the role of leadership to the Frost Clan's princess, there were no objections.
The image of their leader—a princess from one of the Four Great Clans, ranked third among the academy's first years—leading them through the first floor without harm and defeating the original Dark King on her own was seared into their minds.
Celestina had made it look so easy.
As for Lumine... Azriel couldn't say much.
Back then, Lumine hadn't been forced to use his full abilities since the Dark King had only been a Grade 1 beast, not a Grade 2 monster like now.
His fire alone had been enough to burn it, but this time was different.
But what Lumine did have this time was Vergil, who had helped keep him from revealing his other affinities.
Even if Neo Genesis were to attack now, Azriel doubted the outcome would be the same as last time.
Not with how organized the cadets had become, and certainly not with Azriel here.
And then there was the Void Dungeon—relentlessly complicating his life.
Had the cadets split up, things might have turned ugly, but they hadn't.
Azriel doubted the Void Dungeon would throw anything at him with serious consequences, not while they were still on the lower floors.
A sigh escaped his lips as he silently began walking forward, Jasmine and the instructors' curious gazes following him.
Jasmine trailed after him as they passed the celebrating cadets, who were laughing and singing without noticing the two slipping by.
Azriel stopped in front of the obsidian throne at the center of the platform, Jasmine by his side.
The throne was flawless—untouched by time.
No dust, no scratches, no marks.
As if in response to the throne, the platform around them began to repair itself.
Azriel stepped closer, his fingers brushing the black surface.
His reflection stared back at him.
He licked his dry lips, circling the throne.
"Why do you think it was called the Dark King and not the Dark Knight?"
Jasmine tilted her head, considering his question.
"...Because of the throne, right? It was chained to it, as if belonging to it. I don't know why it wore knight's armor, but it definitely seemed like a king."
Azriel smiled softly, standing in front of the throne, his back to her.
"I don't think he was ever a king."
Jasmine's brows furrowed.
"The title of Dark King was wrong."
"Why do you say that...?"
Azriel crouched, picking up the broken chains from the floor.
They hadn't repaired like the rest, nor had they vanished into white dust like the Dark King.
They remained, alone—just like the throne.
"Sister, the Dark King will reappear here, right? Waiting for the next group to challenge it?"
Azriel's question took Jasmine by surprise.
"That's right. It usually takes a day, maybe more or less, for the floor boss to respawn. After that, the gates will close, and everything will return to how it was before."
Azriel's voice softened.
"Its king vanished, its world crumbled, and now it is condemned to sit, chained to this hollow throne, left to rot in the depths of its own misery for the rest of its wretched existence."
Jasmine stared at him, stunned.
"Have you finally lost it? What are you even talking about...?"
She looked at him with concern, as though he had gone mad.
Azriel chuckled softly.
"I read it once in a book."
He dropped the chains, standing up before walking back to Jasmine.
Curiosity flickered in her eyes.
"It was about a knight—loyal to his king—during a war against the creatures of the night. One night, the creatures invaded the kingdom, slaughtering men, women, and children without mercy. The knight rushed to the throne room, only to find his king had vanished, while the kingdom burned around him."
Jasmine was unsure what to say.
It was an interesting story, but she didn't quite understand its relevance.
"When the creatures reached the throne room, they found only the knight. To mock his loyalty, they chained him to the throne, burned his flesh, and left him there forever. The kingdom was destroyed, the humans perished, and the knight's king abandoned him. All that was left for him was to sit there... alone."
Jasmine blinked, absorbing Azriel's words before glancing at the throne.
"That... is incredibly sad."
Azriel laughed lightly at her response. She genuinely seemed to pity the knight.
He patted her head gently before moving back toward the instructors.
"It is, but it was just a story I read. It has nothing to do with the so-called Dark King."
Celestina struggled to maintain control over the excited crowd of cadets celebrating her victory.
They cheered, laughing and shouting, caught up in the moment.
With a small nod, she excused herself and bent to pick up the mana core, fully intending to consume it.
A hush fell over the cadets as they watched her in silent awe, their excitement replaced by anticipation.
She was about to absorb the mana core of a Grade 2 monster—one that had been the floor boss.
As she glanced at their eager faces, a sense of satisfaction washed over her.
But something still felt... off.
Realizing what it was, Celestina turned her head slightly, her gaze traveling farther back.
There, standing with the instructors on the platform, were Azriel and Jasmine.
They watched from a distance, separated from the crowd.
Azriel smiled at her but didn't approach.
She noticed a few cadets casting unfriendly glances in his direction.
It was clear many still didn't think highly of him.
Some even shot him looks that implied they'd rather he stayed with the instructors and Jasmine—who hadn't contributed to the fight.
'...As if they did any better'
If it hadn't been for Azriel helping her, with Vergil joining them, things could have gone much worse.
Everything had worked out smoothly, but she knew it wasn't just her doing.
She owed Azriel as well.
It annoyed her how the others secretly looked down on him, but neither Azriel nor Jasmine seemed to care or even notice.
'Right. They're used to it by now.'
Before his disappearance and supposed death, Azriel had been one of the main daily topics of the world—always involved in some scandal or rumor that tarnished his reputation.
Yet he had never cared.
At previous banquets, some had even had the audacity to gossip about him in front of Jasmine.
Undoubtedly, that must have been unpleasant for her.
But Azriel always remained unbothered.
Celestina made up her mind to thank him, even if he hadn't done much in the fight.
He had still helped, no matter how little.
Besides, she wanted to tell him personally that she had defeated the Dark King.
After all, it was Azriel who had trusted her with the role of leadership from the start.
But before she could reach him, everything changed in an instant.
The platform beneath them began to tremble.
The sound of chains rattling and grinding against each other echoed from below.
Confusion crossed Celestina's face, mirrored by the cadets around her.
But not everyone looked confused.
The trembling intensified, nearly throwing them all off balance.
Falling off the edge would mean plummeting into whatever lay beneath the platform.
Suddenly, the sound of chains snapping filled the air.
And then, without warning—
The platform collapsed.
Celestina's heart dropped to her stomach.
She clutched the mana core tightly as the world around her plunged into darkness.
A blinding light shot from beneath the platform, and as quickly as it had begun, the fall ended.
Celestina blinked, her breath catching as she found herself standing once more.
The platform had stopped shaking, as if nothing had happened.
But something was different.
The obsidian throne was gone.
In its place stood a slightly elevated small circular platform.
They weren't on the first floor anymore.
It didn't take a genius to realize where they were.
'The second floor...'