CHAPTER 139: 139 - THE BLACK FEATHERS

Curtis, Alec, Blake, Eve, Adelle, and Aoi looked in front of them.

And there, they saw a Giant Squid... It was lying completely still. Dead and not moving.

Burns could clearly be seen all over its massive body, and there was a huge hole gaping right on top of its head where Raven’s lightning had struck earlier.

The Giant Squid’s purple blood was everywhere, soaking the water and staining the entire battlefield with its foul color. Pieces of its massive arms and shredded tentacles floated around like grotesque seaweed, drifting on the waves created by the earlier battle.

Siyokoys who had been unlucky enough to be near the mini-boss when Raven’s lightning descended were either already dead or half-dead, their scorched bodies proving that they had been caught up in his overwhelming attack as well.

Then...

’Sorry it took me quite a while, I’m still not used to dual casting.’

Raven’s words echoed in everyone’s minds, casual and light, but at that very moment they felt heavy.

"..."

"..."

Curtis, Blake, Alec, Eve, Aoi, and Adelle stood in silence, speechless, unable to come up with any immediate response.

Dual casting. The phrase alone carried weight. It wasn’t something just anyone could learn.

In fact, among their entire group...

Only Adelle and Alec had the ability to perform dual casting.

Even then, Raven’s casting speed was slower compared to the two of them. That should have meant a huge gap in mastery...

But the difference wasn’t enough to dismiss.

After all, Alec had been a 7th-tier mage in his past life, someone who already mastered countless high-level spells. Adelle, on the other hand, was a mage-class awakener by nature, her talent in spellcasting undeniable.

Raven, though?

Raven mainly relied on weapons in combat. He rarely cast spells at all. In fact, he had once been recorded officially as a non-combatant awakener when they all first entered the academy.

For someone like that to suddenly display the ability to dual cast...

"The magic he used..."

It was then that someone finally broke the silence.

It was Adelle.

The others immediately turned their attention to her, waiting, almost bracing, for the conclusion that would come out of her mouth.

"The magic Raven just used... it’s between 5th tier and 6th tier in power."

"!!"

Her words shocked the others even further, hitting harder than Raven’s own announcement.

They all turned their heads toward Raven again instinctively.

And there he was, calmly chugging down a mana potion to replenish what he had just spent, his figure slowly descending from the air with those wings of his still outstretched.

"He’s getting stronger so fast... If we were to fight again, I’d surely lose."

Alec admitted without hesitation, his tone steady but filled with frustration.

"Tsk... What’s with that bastard."

"When did he even learn to dual cast?"

Curtis and Blake voiced their thoughts right after, both equally irritated but for different reasons.

"..."

"..."

Meanwhile, Eve and Aoi kept their silence. Neither of them had anything meaningful to say, and on top of that, both were simply too drained after the battle to even try.

But regardless of how each of them felt individually, one thing was clear...

For the third time since stepping foot inside [The Labyrinth of the Nurturer]...

Their burning determination to become stronger was reignited once again — by Raven.

...

By the way, Raven hadn’t just stumbled into this. He learned the concept of dual casting directly from his mother, Elaine, a woman capable of triple casting as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

With his unique trait, Understanding, Raven had been able to take that knowledge and refine it, training relentlessly for weeks.

It had been nearly a month since then.

And now, Raven was already more than halfway through mastering the technique.

...

On the other hand...

’Why the hell am I getting stronger even faster than I originally predicted?’

Raven, for his part, wasn’t celebrating. He was confused.

He had known that entering the first tutorial dungeon would speed up his growth compared to normal. He had planned for it, expected it.

But not like this.

’It shouldn’t be this fast...’

[I agree. There must be something else at play, something boosting your growth beyond what you accounted for.]

’Do you have any idea what it is, Sariel?’

[Nope. The Higher Beings wouldn’t tell me anything about it either.]

Raven frowned, his mind racing to pin down a possible explanation. But no matter how much he turned it over in his head, he couldn’t find a satisfying answer.

"..."

After a moment of silence...

"Whatever."

He shook his head and dismissed the thought, giving up on forcing a conclusion.

"It’s only working in my favor. That’s all I need to care about right now."

He muttered under his breath, pushing aside the unease and rejoining the others without another word.

*****

Meanwhile, outside the labyrinth...

Inside the grounds of Lunar Academy.

More specifically, inside one of the rooms of the girls’ dormitory, where students ranked between 50 and 100 resided.

The true reason behind Raven’s explosive growth was currently typing away on a laptop.

That’s right. The cause was not an artifact or hidden blessing.

It was a person.

And that person... was a girl.

Tap- Tap- Tap-

Click-

Her fingers moved swiftly across the keyboard, pressing key after key in rapid rhythm.

"Hmmm~"

She hummed cheerfully as she worked, her tone upbeat and light, a clear sign that she was enjoying every second of what she was doing.

Then, after a while...

"Done!"

The girl announced with a bright smile, leaning back slightly in satisfaction.

"And... post!"

Click-

Without hesitation, she uploaded her finished article directly onto the internet.

She didn’t just upload it to one site either. She spread it across multiple platforms all at once.

And within seconds...

Ting-

Ting-

Ting-

Notifications flooded in rapidly. The article was already gaining traction, attracting readers like a magnet.

It spread instantly, almost as if people had been waiting for it all along.

"Uwaahh... I’m so happy."

The girl whispered to herself, eyes sparkling as she scrolled through positive comments and watched the number of shares skyrocket in real time.

Her name was Jeanna Avyl.

This girl had dark blue eyes, long platinum hair tied neatly into a ponytail, and an undeniably beautiful face that could easily turn heads.

Her body was well-trained, balanced with just the right curves in the right places. She wasn’t overly tall, nor was she petite, but the combination of her physique and features made her stunning and undeniably attractive.

And this very same girl...

Was the one who had once been among the students who bullied Raven on his first day at the academy!

The same girl who, not long afterward during the assessment test, had become one of his admirers.

Now, she was the leader of something much bigger.

The very first Raven fan club!

Its name: [Black Feathers].

They had intentionally avoided including Raven’s actual name in the title, knowing full well he would disband the group immediately if he found out.

(And yes, he would actually do it without hesitation.)

Back to the present.

[Black Feathers] already had thousands of members. Thousands. And the number continued climbing by the hour.

They even had their own dedicated websites — and yes, those sites were filled with nothing but content about Raven.

The article Jeanna had just posted was only one example.

And the members weren’t limited to Lunar Academy either. There were outsiders too, people who had nothing to do with the academy but were drawn in by Raven’s rising name.

So, why does this matter?

Well, it turns out Jeanna — through her fan club — was the reason behind Raven’s abnormal growth.

By using the group she had founded, she spread Raven’s name far and wide, making sure everyone knew about him.

And because of that, Raven continued to draw attention.

That attention was being harnessed by his trait, I like the spotlight.

What Raven may or may not realize is that the hidden feature of that trait is simple: the more positive attention he receives, the stronger the growth boost he gains.

Right now, his name was everywhere.

In fact, it was impossible to walk through Lunar Academy without hearing about him.

Even weeks after the assessment test, articles and rumors about Raven were still circulating online.

And it just keeps increasing by time!

"I wonder what Raven is doing right at this moment..."

Jeanna asked herself softly as she stared at her screen.

"He’ll come back in five days..."

Her tone shifted, quieter, almost longing.

"I just wish time would skip forward, even a single day, so I could see him again sooner."

She sighed, already knowing such a wish could never come true.

(And she was right.)

...

*****

Anyway...

After six relentless days of fighting and clearing their way through the many brutal floors of [The Labyrinth of the Nurturer]...

Raven and the others...

"We’re here..."

They finally stood before the entrance leading to the 10th floor.