Extra's Descent

The Teamfight Tactics session carried on from there.

Students all stood by the side to witness the ongoing match.

The abundance of mana rippled in the air as the ground shook intensely.

Blazing embers filled the arena grounds, along with ice shaped spikes protruding from the ground.

Kracka!

The sound of lightning roared in the air, but would be drowned out by the sound of flames igniting.

Boom—!

The battle was intense. Sparks of different magic continued to be unleashed.

The general consensus could agree that the battle was hard to follow due to the chaos.

Rumble! Rumble!

The ground shook intensely as neither Reinhard's team or Raven's team refused to budge.

At the moment, it seemed like Reinhard and Raven were facing off against each other, while the rest of their team members were against their respective opponents.

It was a battle of numbers.

If even one of their numbers dwindles down, it would most likely be a deciding factor on who the victor was.

And at the moment, it seems like Raven's team member was about to fall as he laid on the ground.

No, he had already fainted.

His opponent used that chance to quickly assist his team member.

It was now a two versus one. Two of Reinhard's team members, up against a single opponent from Raven's side.

Swoosh—!

And as expected, the numbers advantage was too much for Raven's team member, as he was defeated so easily.

Now the only one left was Raven, and unironically, he was the flag.

It was, in fact, the best strategy that any team could come up with.

The flag being the strongest member was the best decision.

Up against three opponents, Raven dashed from all sides as he dodged the oncoming sparks of magic coming his way.

He was fast.

However, Reinhard was fast as well as he was already upon Raven.

Vooosh—!

In rapid succession, Reinhard sent his flames towards Raven.

But quickly maneuvering about, Raven instantly dodged his flames and twisted his body, aiming to kick Reinhard's side.

It seemed like Reinhard had already expected it as he was well prepared to guard Raven's oncoming attack.

And with his quick thinking…

Boom—!

Raven's feet met Reinhard's palms, and instantly, the sound of explosions could be heard from where Brandon stood.

He continued looking at the ongoing battle. But his thoughts were fleeting as his attention was fixed on something else.

The incursion.

Not once had he ever managed to distract himself after finding out about what resides in the rift.

Coming from another world, the concepts of otherworldly creatures weren't unknown to him. Especially as a reader.

It was a common trope in fantasy books he had read a while back.

However, in the world he was in, Path to Ascension, he was well aware that these otherworldly races had never appeared.

Was it because he had never finished the novel?

Did they appear in the arc, just after he stopped?

It was a dilemma that filled his mind.

But even if that were the case, how come the revelation was happening this early on?

On the first day of his arrival he should've been in the 20th chapter of the novel.

And since only four months have passed as per his arrival, the 3800's chapter should still be a few years away.

"Wait."

That was when he started recalling Jin's words.

—Three years.

Does three years mean something?

Were the later chapters a three year timeskip in the novel?

Does the whole concept of Path to Ascension change after three years?

"Fuck."

So many questions.

But he knew there were no answers to it.

"...."

Jin.

In the first place, why was Jin so fixated about waiting for three years…?

Was he…

"...Another transmigrator."

Was that it?

Did he finally solve the mystery of Jin's omniscience?

"Damn it."

And so his thoughts ended there.

Before he realized it, Cyrus and Julie were looking at him with raised brows.

"What?"

"Didn't know you were rooting for Reinhard. I thought you'd be neutral."

Fixing his gaze on Julie, it seemed like she shared the same thoughts as Cyrus as she nodded her head continuously.

Nod. Nod.

"What do you—Oh."

Turning his head to the side, a cloud of dust blocked his peripheral vision.

However, as the dust faded, he could make out the silhouette of a lone man.

He stood upright while bodies were strewn on the ground before him.

"He won."

"Yep."

He had initially expected Raven to win. But when the tides were turned against him, he quickly dismissed those thoughts.

Even Brandon would have a hard time facing off against several elite Astrea Academy students all on his own.

If it weren't for [Mana Disruption], he would've lost so many fights where the numbers were against him.

And at that, the first Teamfight Tactics match ended.

"Winner. Raven Blackheart's team."

"Wooo…!"

"Whew~ Whew~"

The sound of praises and whistling echoed throughout the entire academy arena grounds.

Amidst the uproar, he turned his head to the audience side of the stage, only to find….

No one.

"Huh?"

For some reason, Rachel had already left.

***

Quickly exiting the academy arena grounds, Rachel roamed the halls of the academy.

Tak. Tak.

The sound of her footsteps echoed as she hurried her pace.

There was no point in staying around since she wasn't even part of the current Combat Class session.

It was a waste of time.

Shortly after, she paused as she had arrived at her destination.

The library.

Creaaaaak….

Slowly opening the door, the familiar sight of the library immediately registered in her peripheral vision.

The library was quiet, with rows of tall shelves filled with books.

Soft light filtered in through large windows, as they cast their gentle glow.

People moved silently, browsing through the aisles or sitting at wooden tables, reading.

As she glanced around, she immediately spotted a familiar figure, seated at a table.

Her long blonde hair and crimson eyes immediately made her stand out.

At the moment, she was alone.

As soon as she spotted Amy, she instantly made her way towards her.

Noticing her sudden arrival, Amy drifted her attention from her back and raised her head.

Meeting Rachel's gaze, her eyes lit up.

"Rachel?"

"Amy, come with me."

"Huh?"

"Let's go to the Ashfield residence."

Perplexed, Amy stammered at Rachel's words.

"H-huh? Why do you wanna go there?"

"I'll tell you everything on the way. Come on, you've got nothing to do anyway."

"Right. My lectures had already ended an hour ago. But are you sure…?"

Amy seemed like she didn't want to bring up the topic. However, Rachel knew all too well what Amy was trying to imply.

The fact that Rachel wasn't on good terms with the Ashfields.

However, Rachel didn't care anymore.

It was finally time to find out the truth.

"Yes. It's about time we fix our family, Amy."

"What do you—"

"This isn't the appropriate place to talk about this. I'll tell you once we arrive at your home."

"...Alright. I haven't visited the estate in a while anyway."

She had managed to convince her.

Just like her, Amy was living separately with the Ashfields. But it was for a different reason.

For Amy to learn how to live independently.

Quickly exiting the academy, the two stood by the exit as they waited for Amy's car.

They waited for a few minutes until the familiar black car arrived.

Though it belonged to the Ashfields, and the driver worked for them, Rachel wasn't uncomfortable at all.

After all, the driver had worked for them for as long as Rachel could remember.

The driver's seat window slowly rolled down. A man in his late fifties registered in her view.

His eyes were wide open as he looked at Rachel.

"Lady Rachel?"

"Good to see you again, Vincent."

Despite the fact that Rachel had left the Ashfields a long time ago, she was still doted upon by the Ashfield staff.

One of them was Vincent, a driver that served the Ashfields.

Amy entered the backseat first and Rachel followed shortly after.

Truth be told, Rachel still used the perks that came from being an Ashfield.

This wasn't the first time this had ever happened.

Clearing her throat, Amy instructed.

"Ashfield estate, please."

"Eh?"

Vincent was perplexed.

"I get that you want to visit, since you haven't been in the estate for a long time, Lady Amy."

His gaze fixed on Rachel who looked at him back.

"But since Lady Rachel is here with you. Does that mean…"

"Yes. I'll be visiting the estate as well."

"...O-oh."

At that, Vincent relented.

It was none of his business on what the young ladies were up to.

He just had to follow their orders.

Vrooom—!

Shortly after, the car drove off.