Chapter : 1449

  The illusion started instantly. The roof disappeared. Lloyd was suddenly standing in a jungle. Vines were wrapping around his legs. Tigers were circling him. The sky turned blood red.

  "Impressive," Lloyd said calmly. "Visuals. Auditory hallucinations. Even tactile feedback."

  He didn't move. He didn't draw his sword.

  "You cannot fight what isn't there," Rubaiya's voice echoed from everywhere at once. "You cannot hit a ghost."

  A tiger lunged at him. Its claws tore through his chest.

  Lloyd didn't flinch. The claws passed through him like smoke.

  "It's not real," Lloyd said. "My brain thinks it is. My nerves think it is. But my soul knows better."

  He activated his [Black Ring Eyes]. The jungle dissolved. The tigers vanished. He was back on the roof.

  Rubaiya was standing ten feet away, looking surprised.

  "How?" she hissed.

  "I have my own tricks," Lloyd said. "Your illusions rely on mana manipulation. You hijack the senses. But if I cut the connection..."

  He snapped his fingers. A pulse of Void energy rippled out. The air cleared completely.

  "No more games, Rubaiya," Lloyd said. "Surrender. Or I will make you."

  Rubaiya glared at him. "You think you have won because you saw through a parlor trick? You arrogant boy. You have no idea what I am capable of."

  She raised her hand. "Legion! Feast!"

  The air behind her darkened. A massive, grotesque shape materialized. It was the leech spirit, but fully manifested. It was the size of a carriage. Its mouth was a gaping maw of spinning teeth.

  It shrieked. A sound that made Lloyd's teeth ache.

  "Kill him," Rubaiya commanded.

  The spirit lunged. It didn't use illusions this time. It used mass. It used teeth.

  Lloyd drew his sword. He reinforced his body with [Demon Gate: Second Gate].

  He dodged the lunge. The spirit smashed into the stone floor, cracking the roof.

  "You're fast," Rubaiya noted. She pulled a dagger from her sleeve. It was a curved, wicked blade made of black glass. "But can you fight two enemies at once?"

  She charged. She moved with the grace of a dancer. She was fast. Faster than a scholar should be.

  Lloyd parried her strike. Sparks flew.

  "You're good," Lloyd grunted, pushing her back. "Assassin training?"

  "Survival training," Rubaiya spat. She spun, slashing at his legs.

  Lloyd jumped back. The leech spirit attacked from the side, trying to latch onto his arm.

  Lloyd kicked the spirit in its fleshy side. It felt like kicking a bag of wet sand.

  "Gross," Lloyd said.

  He was fighting a two-front war. Rubaiya was relentless, her dagger seeking any opening. The spirit was a tank, absorbing blows and coming back for more.

  "I can't kill her," Lloyd thought. "I need her alive. I need her to confess. I need to clear Jamie's name."

  He needed to disable her.

  He waited for an opening. Rubaiya lunged again, aiming for his throat.

  Lloyd sidestepped. He didn't strike with his sword. He struck with his hand. He used a precise, open-palm strike to her shoulder.

  Crunch.

  Rubaiya gasped and dropped the dagger. Her arm went limp.

  "That's a dislocated shoulder," Lloyd said. "Give up."

  Rubaiya stumbled back. She clutched her arm. She looked at him with pure hatred.

  "Never," she whispered.

  She whispered a word of power. The leech spirit exploded. Not into gore, but into a cloud of thick, black smoke. It covered the roof in instant darkness.

  "Smoke bomb?" Lloyd coughed. "Really?"

  He waved his hand, using a gust of wind from a simple spell to clear the air.

  The roof was empty. Rubaiya was gone.

  Lloyd ran to the edge. He looked down. He saw a figure running across the courtyard, moving towards the woods.

  "She's running," Lloyd said. "Good. A running enemy makes mistakes."

  He didn't chase her immediately. He needed to secure the scene. He needed to make sure she hadn't left any traps.

  He picked up her dropped dagger. It was coated in a green liquid. Poison.

  "She tried to kill me," Lloyd realized. "She really tried to kill me."

  He felt a cold knot in his stomach. He had underestimated her ruthlessness. She wasn't just a disillusioned teacher. She was a killer.

  "Game over, Rubaiya," Lloyd said to the wind. "You just lost your cover. Now you're just prey."

  He turned and walked back to the stairs. He had unmasked the monster. Now he just had to catch her.

  And he knew exactly where she was going. She was going to her backup plan. To her real master.

  The hunt was on.

  Chapter : 1450

  Lloyd didn't chase Rubaiya immediately. He let her run. He let her panic. A panicked enemy led you to their safe house. A calm enemy led you into an ambush.

  He waited until nightfall. Then, he went to the woods.

  He tracked her easily. She was sloppy. She was injured. She left a trail of broken twigs and disturbed leaves.

  He found her in a clearing near the edge of the Academy grounds. She was waiting. She had set up a ritual circle. Candles burned with blue flames.

  "Trying to call for a ride?" Lloyd asked, stepping into the clearing.

  Rubaiya spun around. She held her injured arm. She looked pale, but defiant.

  "You followed me," she said. "Foolish."

  "Persistent," Lloyd corrected. "It's one of my best qualities."

  "You think you have won," Rubaiya sneered. "You think because you know my face, you have power over me. But you are wrong. I am not just an illusionist, Lloyd. I am a weaver of reality."

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  She stepped into the ritual circle. The blue flames roared higher.

  "Legion," she commanded. "Ascend."

  The leech spirit materialized again. But it was different. It was larger. It had grown armor plates made of bone. It roared, a sound that shook the trees.

  "Second phase?" Lloyd asked, drawing his sword. "Okay. Let's dance."

  He charged.

  Rubaiya didn't move. She just smiled.

  As Lloyd swung his sword at the spirit, Rubaiya vanished. She didn't teleport. She just... ceased to be there.

  Lloyd stumbled. "What?"

  Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his back.

  Schlick.

  He looked down. A blade was protruding from his chest. A black glass blade.

  Rubaiya whispered in his ear. "I told you. I am an illusionist. The woman in the circle was a fake. I was behind you the whole time."

  Lloyd coughed. Blood spilled from his lips. He dropped his sword. He fell to his knees.

  "You..." he gasped. "You killed me."

  "I did," Rubaiya said. She pulled the blade out. Lloyd collapsed face-forward into the dirt. He twitched once, then went still.

  Rubaiya stood over him. She wiped the blade on her robe.

  "Pathetic," she said. "The 'White Mask'. The hero. Just a boy playing soldier."

  She kicked his body. It was heavy. Dead weight.

  "You should have stayed in your tower, Lloyd," she said to the corpse. "You should have stuck to your toys. Now look at you. Food for the worms."

  She looked around. No witnesses. The forest was silent.

  "I need to hide the body," she decided. "I can't leave him here. If they find him, the investigation will never end."

  She dragged Lloyd by his feet. She pulled him deeper into the woods, towards a ravine used for dumping magical waste. It was a deep, dark pit filled with failed experiments and broken golems.

  She pushed him over the edge.

  Lloyd tumbled down into the darkness. He hit the bottom with a sickening thud.

  "Goodbye, Professor," Rubaiya said. "Class dismissed."

  She turned and walked away. She felt a surge of triumph. She had won. She had eliminated the only threat. Now, she could complete her mission. She could bring the Academy down.

  She walked back to her dorm, humming a little tune. She washed the blood off her hands. She slept like a baby.

  At the bottom of the ravine, in the pile of garbage and bones, Lloyd's body lay broken and still.

  For about five minutes.

  Then, the body dissolved.

  It didn't rot. It melted into a puddle of silver liquid. Then the liquid evaporated into mist.

  And from the shadows of a nearby tree, the real Lloyd stepped out.

  He was perfectly fine. Not a scratch on him. He was holding an apple. He took a bite.

  "Wow," Lloyd said, chewing. "She really enjoyed that. She kicked me. That was rude."

  He had used Echo. His Doppelganger spirit.

  He had sent Echo into the clearing disguised as himself. Echo could mimic flesh, blood, even the sensation of death. It was the perfect decoy.

  "She bought it," Lloyd said to the empty ravine. "She bought it hook, line, and sinker."

  He had needed confirmation. Absolute, undeniable proof of her intent. If he had just arrested her, she could have claimed self-defense. She could have claimed it was a misunderstanding.

  But stabbing a man in the back and dumping his body in a pit? That was pretty hard to explain away.

  "Attempted murder," Lloyd listed. "Conspiracy. Use of forbidden magic. Illegal dumping. She is going away for a long, long time."

  Chapter : 1451

  He looked up at the edge of the ravine. Rubaiya was gone. She thought she was safe. She thought the game was over.

  "Oh, Rubaiya," Lloyd whispered. "The game hasn't even started."

  He had her now. She would let her guard down. She would make a move. She would contact her handlers.

  And when she did, Lloyd would be watching.

  He climbed out of the ravine. He moved silently through the woods. He felt a grim satisfaction. It was a risky gambit. Echo had taken a lot of damage, which meant Lloyd had a headache, but it was worth it.

  "Now for the fun part," Lloyd thought. " The haunting."

  He walked back to the Academy. He went to his tower. He changed his clothes. He drank some coffee.

  He waited for morning.

  He imagined the look on her face when he walked into the faculty lounge tomorrow. It was going to be priceless. It was going to be the best moment of his life.

  "I love being a ghost," Lloyd grinned. "It's very liberating."

  The next morning, the faculty lounge was quiet. Rubaiya was there early. She was making tea. She felt light. She felt free. The thorn in her side was gone.

  She hummed as she poured the hot water. She imagined the chaos that would ensue when Lloyd "went missing." The panic. The fear. It would be delicious.

  The door opened.

  Rubaiya didn't look up. "Good morning, Daniel. Is the armory secure?"

  "The armory is fine," a voice said. "But the coffee pot is empty. Who drank all the coffee?"

  Rubaiya froze. The teapot slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor. Hot water splashed her boots, but she didn't feel it.

  She knew that voice.

  She turned around slowly. Her heart was hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.

  Standing in the doorway, holding an empty mug and looking annoyed, was Lloyd Ferrum.

  He wasn't dead. He wasn't broken. He wasn't at the bottom of a ravine.

  He was alive. He was wearing a fresh suit. He looked bored.

  "Lloyd?" Rubaiya whispered. Her voice was a croak. "You... you are here."

  "I am here," Lloyd said. He walked over to the coffee pot and shook it sadly. "Tragedy. Absolute tragedy. Someone brew a fresh pot, please."

  He looked at her. He smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. It was a shark's smile.

  "You look like you've seen a ghost, Rubaiya," Lloyd said. "Rough night?"

  Rubaiya stared at him. Her mind was racing. I killed him. I felt the blade go in. I felt him die. I dragged him. I dumped him. How?

  "Is it... is it really you?" she stammered. She reached out a hand, then pulled it back, terrified that her fingers would pass through him.

  "Flesh and blood," Lloyd said. He pinched his own arm. "Ouch. See? Real."

  He walked closer to her. He stepped over the broken teapot.

  "You made a mess," Lloyd tutted. "You seem nervous. Guilt complex?"

  "I... I am just surprised," Rubaiya managed to say. She was regaining her composure, forcing the mask back on. "I thought you were... out. Investigating."

  "I was," Lloyd said. "I investigated a very interesting ravine. The view was terrible. But the company was... enlightening."

  He leaned in close. He invaded her personal space.

  "Come with me," Lloyd said softly. "We need to talk. About... curriculum."

  He grabbed her arm. His grip was iron. He steered her out of the lounge, past the confused stares of the other professors.

  He dragged her into a small, empty supply closet down the hall. He kicked the door shut and locked it.

  The space was tiny. Intimate. Terrifying.

  Rubaiya backed up against a shelf of mops. "What do you want? Why are we here?"

  "Cut the act," Lloyd said. His voice dropped the playful tone. It was cold. Deadly. "I know what you did. I know what you tried to do."

  "I don't know what you mean," Rubaiya said, her eyes darting around for an exit.

  "You stabbed me," Lloyd said. "In the back. Literally. You dragged me through the woods. You threw me in a pit. Do not insult me by denying it."

  "You... you survived?" Rubaiya whispered. "How? The blade... it was poisoned. It was lethal."

  "I am hard to kill," Lloyd said. "And you are easy to fool."

  He stepped closer. He was looming over her.

  Chapter : 1452

  "No matter how many times you try," Lloyd said, his voice a low growl, "you cannot kill me. I am not a man you can erase, Rubaiya. I am a problem you cannot solve."

  Rubaiya trembled. She felt small. She felt powerless.

  "What are you?" she asked. "A demon? A monster?"

  "I'm a teacher," Lloyd said. "And you just failed the final exam."

  He leaned down, his face inches from hers. He activated his [All-Seeing Eye]. His eyes glowed.

  "And I can still see it," Lloyd whispered. "That ugly parasite behind you. Hiding like a baby that wants its mother's attention. It's scared, Rubaiya. It knows I can hurt it. It knows I can unmake it."

  Rubaiya gasped. He saw Legion. He saw through her disguise, through her lies, through her soul.

  "You..." she choked out.

  "I own you," Lloyd said. "I have the evidence. I have the witness. I have your life in my hand."

  Rubaiya stared at him. The fear in her eyes began to harden into something else. Desperation. Survival instinct.

  She stood up straighter. She pushed back against the fear. She was a survivor. She had climbed from the slums. She wouldn't let him break her.

  "You think you have won," Rubaiya said, her voice shaking but gaining strength. "You think because you are alive, you have the advantage. But you are wrong, Lloyd. You are playing a game you do not understand."

  "Enlighten me," Lloyd said.

  "You are one man," Rubaiya said. "I am part of something bigger. Something older. The Seventh Circle is not just a cult. It is a tide. You can build your walls, you can play your tricks, but the tide always comes in."

  "I like the beach," Lloyd said. "I can swim."

  "You are making a gamble," Rubaiya hissed. "A gamble with a tough opponent. You think you can blackmail me? You think you can use me? My masters do not tolerate failure. But they also do not tolerate threats."

  She stepped forward, trying to regain some dominance.

  "If you expose me," she said, "you expose yourself. You reveal your power. You become the primary target. Not just for me, but for them. The Curators. The Princes of Hell. Do you really want that attention?"

  "I already have their attention," Lloyd said. "I'm just making sure they know I'm waving back."

  "You are a fool," Rubaiya said. "A brave, stupid fool. Your life is the only thing which will be lost here. You cannot save everyone. You cannot even save yourself."

  She reached for the door handle. Lloyd didn't stop her.

  "Leave," Lloyd said. "Run back to your masters. Tell them the Ghost of Ferrum says hello. Tell them I'm coming for them."

  Rubaiya opened the door. She looked back at him one last time. Her face was a mask of bravado, but her hands were shaking.

  "Watch your back, Professor," she said. "The shadows have teeth."

  "So do I," Lloyd replied.

  She fled. She walked down the hallway, her steps fast, her head down. She looked like a woman who was running from a fire.

  Lloyd watched her go. He leaned against the mop shelf. He let out a long breath.

  "That went well," he muttered.

  He had terrified her. He had rattled her cage. Now, she would make mistakes. She would panic. She would lead him to the others.

  "She thinks she threatened me," Lloyd thought. "But she just confirmed everything. She's scared. And scared people are predictable."

  He walked out of the closet. He went back to the faculty lounge. He poured a fresh cup of coffee.

  The other professors were chatting about the weather. They didn't know that a war had just been declared in the supply closet.

  Lloyd took a sip. It was hot. It was bitter. It was perfect.

  "Round two," Lloyd whispered to the steam. "Let's see what you've got."

  He sat down at his desk. He pulled out a piece of paper. He started to draw a new plan. A trap. A trap for a whole nest of rats.

  The investigation was over. The hunt was beginning. And Lloyd Ferrum was the only one who knew the rules.

  Lloyd Ferrum sat in his office in the Old Tower, staring at a diagram on the wall. It wasn't the schematic for the Aegis suit. It wasn't a battle plan for the goblin war. It was a diagram of a leech. A very, very hungry leech.