Chapter 265: Dark Demon and the Sucking Spirit (4k)
The Sucking Spirit, greedy and despicable, drains all joyful memories, then fills them with terrifying nightmares, causing despair and death in dreams.
Professor Nina’s lesson was designed to let students experience the confusion and loss of having their memories absorbed by a Sucking Spirit, so they could snap out of it quickly and not fall deeper into despair.
The Sucking Spirit is defenseless when absorbing memories, frail like paper, easily killed.
Yet knowing this is one thing; doing it is another.
Most students were extremely averse to such an experience.
However, it was a necessary experience before venturing into the Dungeon, a mandatory requirement for the Beast Studies class.
…
Professor Nina scanned the classroom, her gaze finally settling on Robert’s face. “I remember you, Robert Broheim. You said last class that you wanted to experience this!”
“Classic rumor-mongering!” Robert immediately shook his head to deny it.
But single-minded Nina didn’t notice these details. She loudly said, “Then let Broheim go first!”
Wit nudged Robert’s arm, encouraging him, “Go on, Robert. There’s nothing to be afraid of.”
Robert exclaimed in shock, “Didn’t you say the opposite last week?”
Wit shyly smiled, “Really? Maybe I wasn’t ready then. With Professor Nina here, there won’t be any problems.”
Robert: “But this one is even bigger than the one you faced!”
Wit: “It’s just larger. Like height, weight, or size, being big doesn’t mean it’s stronger.”
Robert: “…”
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Robert reluctantly walked up to the stage, setting a good start for the Beast Studies class.
Professor Nina had little impression of this boy who knew the origins of Beasts.
She grabbed the Sucking Spirit by its tail, swinging it around, then used her other hand to circle its tail, pulling from tail to snout.
The once swollen, frightening Sucking Spirit instantly turned into a cylinder. Although it quickly inflated again, its comical appearance made it less intimidating.
Robert approached the Sucking Spirit, swallowing hard, and forcefully said, “Let’s begin!”
Professor Nina shook the Sucking Spirit, holding only its tail.
The Sucking Spirit lunged at Robert, arms flailing.
Robert stared fiercely into its eye sockets, suddenly freezing in place.
A gray bubble began to rise from his face, growing larger and larger.
Robert’s expression turned pale.
He suddenly screamed, “Ah!” His eyes flashed with a hint of blood-red!
A hint of bloody aura leaked out.
The Sucking Spirit abruptly stopped moving.
Professor Nina looked puzzled, scratching her head.
Robert snapped back to reality, punching the Sucking Spirit!
“Pfft!”
The Sucking Spirit’s bloated belly was flattened, and the memory bubbles it had sucked in were vomited out, returning to Robert’s mind.
Robert regained clarity, his mind swirling with unfamiliar memories.
He stood still, bewildered.
“Robert Broheim, great job!”
Professor Nina clapped happily.
Some students looked at him with newfound respect.
Even after returning to his seat, Robert remained dazed.
He sat blankly until Wit nudged his arm, smiling, “You did well, Robert.”
Robert responded, “Just okay.”
…
Regardless, Robert’s performance did set an example.
Especially for the students from the Knight Academy, feeling they couldn’t be weaker than Robert, they all mustered courage and stepped up.
The screams of students and the howls of the Sucking Spirit filled the room, rising and falling.
Occasional jeers added to the excitement.
Those uninterested, like Dark Demon, quietly continued with their own tasks.
…
In no time, the class ended.
Professor Nina counted the names in her register, watching her teaching mission complete with great excitement.
“Only one left!”
She looked toward the golden-haired youth at the back of the classroom.
This youth had greatly assisted her during the first lecture last week, and she felt grateful.
“Dark Demon!”
“Hmm?”
Dark raised his head, noticing the empty stage.
“Guess it’s my turn.”
He put down his pen and stood up.
Actually, he was quite curious about the Sucking Spirit’s abilities.
Though books stated it absorbed only memories, emotions can be triggered by memories, making people feel joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.
In developing the “Capital Sin” series of Magi Cards, emotions and memories are closely linked.
To break through bottlenecks and create unique arrays, one needs to know as much as possible.
…
Half a minute later.
Dark walked onto the stage.
The pitiful Sucking Spirit was held by Professor Nina, floating like a balloon.
Despite its terrifying appearance, it seemed somewhat comical after prolonged observation.
Seeing another human child approach, the Sucking Spirit, with its tiny brain, tirelessly lunged forward.
“If I were on Earth, I’d probably be trembling by now.”
Dark blinked, surprised to find he felt no fear.
The Sucking Spirit’s face rapidly enlarged in his view but suddenly halted just before contact.
Professor Nina firmly gripped its tail, keeping it from touching any student.
Close proximity, thin black mist seeped from the three holes in the Sucking Spirit’s face, emitting a faint stench.
Dark calmly stood with hands folded, “Come, suck me!”
“Awoof!”
The Sucking Spirit opened its mouth, sucking in air, its eyes and mouth swirling inward, suction force erupting!
Dark squinted, feeling his hair being sucked.
But nothing else happened.
“Wasn’t it supposed to suck out memories?”
He looked up, puzzled, meeting the Sucking Spirit’s eyes.
“You’re not sucking!”
“I am!”
“Can you do it faster?”
“I really am!”
The Sucking Spirit felt humiliated.
It struggled to suck.
It tried desperately.
The Sucking Spirit swelled into a ball.
Its suction reached its limit!
In the midst of the Sucking Spirit’s furious roar.
A transparent tendril finally drifted from Dark’s face.
The difficulty wasn’t due to other reasons but because his spiritual power had been strengthened after practicing the “Technique of the Shadow God.”
Skills like “Suck Spirit” were tied to the strength of one’s spiritual power.
The stronger the opponent’s spiritual power, the harder it was to absorb.
Regardless, after relentless effort, the Sucking Spirit succeeded!
It watched the tendrils drifting from Dark’s face, tears welling up!
But then.
With just a lick.
The Sucking Spirit’s body froze, then convulsed violently.
Its tiny brain couldn’t comprehend what was happening, its internal ecosystem completely disordered.
Its face turned upward, numerous tendrils surged from its eyes and mouth, spreading upwards.
Something seemed to push from within, distorting its surface.
“What’s going on?”
“What happened?”
“Is it going to explode again?”
The Sucking Spirit’s abnormality caused immediate exclamations from the students.
Chaos erupted in the classroom.
Those in front hurriedly covered their faces with books, as if this would shield them from an explosion.
…
“Awoof! Awoof! Awoof!”
The Sucking Spirit’s cries were pitiful and helpless.
Professor Nina examined it carefully, tapping its belly twice.
But she saw nothing unusual.
Dark was surprised by the Sucking Spirit’s transformation, struggling to understand what had happened.
As the Sucking Spirit inflated like a balloon, everyone guessed its imminent fate.
Another explosion!
Professor Nina panicked, grabbing the Sucking Spirit and rushing out.
The previous explosion was merely a gust of wind, but this one looked more ominous.
She didn’t want to lose her job over a teaching accident—this was a rare opportunity!
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
Professor Nina squeezed out of the classroom door swiftly.
Curious students stood up instinctively.
But soon, a loud explosion echoed outside.
“Boom!”
The explosion reverberated in the empty corridor.
Worried for Professor Nina, Dark rushed out, but the large, yet seemingly delicate figure stood steady nearby.
Apart from messy fur around its face, it was unharmed.
No wonder it was a hybrid of the mighty beast!
…
“It seems like last week, the Sucking Spirit couldn’t handle the pressure and exploded!”
Returning to the classroom, Professor Nina rubbed her head, trying to gloss over the incident.
“Professor, next time, please take more safety measures,” Emma from the front row worriedly suggested.
“Hehe.” Professor Nina shifted her gaze, changing the subject, “Anyway, class is almost over. Today’s homework is to analyze a common monster in the Dungeon. Submit by next Wednesday noon. I’ll choose one for next week’s lesson. Choose one you like, but make sure it’s common! And no overly powerful ones!”
Students exchanged glances, realizing it was an opportunity.
Not all common monsters in the Dungeon were as terrifying as the Sucking Spirit.
There were a few cute and harmless ones!
For instance…
“Mushroom Bear!”
Diana suddenly shouted.
Rose quickly pulled her down.
Dark, sitting behind, couldn’t help but laugh.
The Mushroom Bear, a young bear with a mushroom on its head, looked adorable like a plush toy when seen in illustrations.
But in reality, it could release troublesome mushroom spores, making it a dangerous monster in the Dungeon.
Teenagers tend to judge by appearances.
Girls prefer cute monsters, while boys might favor handsome ones.
Like Tudor, who keeps talking about dragons…
If Professor Nina heard, she might cry.
…
“Ding-dong!”
The end-of-class bell rang.
Dark gathered his books and called Diana and Rose to leave the classroom.
Friday afternoon was open day in Traveler’s Street, but they needed to apply for the Novice Tournament at the Dueling Club tomorrow morning.
This meant little to Dark, whose credits were in surplus.
But for the others, it was a good chance to earn credits.
Regular attendance earned 10 credits per class, 140 for the semester.
Winning a match in the tournament earned 150 credits, equivalent to attending classes seriously for a week!
The challenge was winning the matches, mostly attended by second-year students.
So, it’s best to proceed cautiously.
After dinner…
The trio followed the map on their Selection Card and found the Dueling Club office in the upper levels of the Castle.
The Dueling Club office had five windows, corresponding to second to sixth years.
First-year students were included in the second year.
Generally, applying for a duel required visiting this office.
Sometimes, the club sent invitations, usually with extra rewards.
Today, the staff at Window 1 was a young lady, clearly a student part-time.
Dark waited ten minutes and was finally called.
He registered, filled out a simple form, paid 50 credits, and received a contestant card.
Only those with a contestant card could enter the Dueling Arena’s facilities.
The short-haired lady handed him the card, saying gently, “The tournament runs from Saturday morning eight to noon. By tonight twelve, the club will send a duel notification through your Selection Card. Then you can see your match schedule and opponents.”
Dark asked, “Do we have to wait so long?”
The lady nodded, “The club arranges the schedule based on all participants after registration ends, so it takes time.”
Dark examined the contestant card, accepting the explanation.
As he turned to leave, a staff member inside the office suddenly glanced at him, his gaze hidden.
