CHAPTER 129: CHAPTER 129: GRAND KNIGHT

The golem’s body lay lifeless, its head on the ground still showing a look of combat, unaware it had been killed by the black blade of the Sword of Chaos. The enchanted rocks that spun like meteors began to fall, hitting the ground with loud impacts, while the giant stone body remained standing, ready to keep fighting.

William approached with slow steps, still feeling the excitement of battle. He realized that since arriving in this world, he enjoyed fighting more and more; it was an immense dopamine release that made him feel alive.

As he got closer, he saw the gray energy emerge as always. He extended his hand, and the process began.

The stone corpse began to crumble. First, cracks appeared as if all the rocks were being destroyed from within, until it was just a pile of scattered rocks on the ground, and finally, everything turned into gray smoke.

The smoke started entering through his ring, sliding over his skin like black snakes that made him feel stronger and stronger.

William’s body began to burn intensely. Every muscle tensed; energy poured into him like an uncontrollable storm.

"Hah...!" William groaned, falling to one knee.

His body was about to burst. He could feel it, ready to ascend by devouring the golem’s energy, but he didn’t ascend. He was at the limit but simply couldn’t pass.

The energy moved... but it leaked out of his body, as if his body couldn’t hold it all. As if it escaped through invisible cracks.

"Why...?" he gasped.

"Angel?" he called, through gritted teeth.

"...I don’t know," his companion replied with a worried voice. "It’s flowing, but it’s not settling... it’s like when you channel magic and can’t store it. It doesn’t stay."

William clenched his teeth, frustrated.

Then Anubis approached.

"You feel it leaving, don’t you?" he asked in a grave tone.

William nodded, too weak to speak.

"That’s because you’re not letting your body absorb it. You must mix the nightmare energy with your body. Make it flow as if it were a spell, but not outward... but into your muscles."

William blinked, processing. He understood immediately. Anubis was referring to the gray energy, that essence of nightmares he had hidden, which he feared using openly in case it left traces when he returned to the other world.

"No... if I use that here, a trace could be left... they might know," William hesitated, speaking in his mind.

He let mana flow throughout his body, which caused him to feel a refreshing sensation that relaxed him, making him feel incredibly comfortable, but unfortunately, it didn’t last long, and the pain returned even stronger.

Clenching his teeth, he wanted to keep resisting, but his body was at its limit; he had used all his mana before the fight, and the little that remained he had used during the battle.

He had no other choice.

With a grunt of resignation... he let the gray energy flow.

The reaction was immediate. His body convulsed.

The nightmare energy not only filled the mana channels: it began to merge with them. The combination was violent, unnatural, but perfect. A chaotic symbiosis.

William screamed as he convulsed on the ground, his whole body hitting the hard rocky floor. His skin stretched, muscles grew as if inflated from within, taking impossible proportions; the energy was merging so violently that William’s body was stretched to its limit.

"GAAAHHHHH!" he roared, leaping up, sweating blood as he roared to the sky, and then... darkness. The world stopped, and his mind fell unconscious once more.

After an indefinite time, William awoke. He was lying in his room inside the castle. Angel floated beside him, with an expression mixed with pride and concern.

"Wow, you took your time resting. Many hours have passed; I was worried you wouldn’t be able to return for the next class and people would suspect something."

William slowly sat up. His whole body felt too light; moving a little, he shot off the bed, hitting the wall headfirst.

"What happened?" he asked with a rough voice.

"You ascended," Angel said with a slight smile. "You’re a grand knight now."

William looked at her in silence.

"Your strength, dexterity, and vitality are at 100. Barely... but you made it."

She paused. Her voice became more serious.

"But there’s something else. You didn’t just reach the level of grand knights. The mix of mana and nightmare energy... multiplied your power."

"What?"

"Yes. It’s not just that you’re strong. Your body is now superior to any other grand knight we’ve seen. Every point in you is worth more. I don’t know if it was because of the energy, the fusion, or the type of essence from the nightmare monsters... but you’re above them. According to my analysis, you’re 30% stronger than anyone at your same level."

William remained silent. Then he raised his hand and clenched it. His muscles resonated with a crunch, showing the power they hid.

"How am I supposed to hide this? Even I feel like my body has grown several centimeters, and I look much more defined; it would be hard to explain even if I hid under a tunic, the change is visible."

"I’d already thought about that. The swelling is quite noticeable, but it can be regulated. When we return, I’ll force your circulatory system to slow down, deflating your muscles a bit. Also, you must avoid sudden movements, or your body will release its full power, and it will be obvious you’re a grand knight. From now on, no matter what happens to Lia, you must not react unless you’re ready to fight to the death against the entire academy."

"Damn it, I’d hate to see her get hurt and not be able to do anything. Is there no way to limit my strength with some adjustment inside my body?"

"It’s possible to force you not to use your strength, or at least it was possible, but now my control over your body is very limited, so I can’t force it as before. It wouldn’t be easier to show a lower power level than you actually have."