The next day, preparations were made at every academy. Once they learned what had happened, they realized how severe of a battle these people had endured. Knowing the death rate, if not the full story, was enough. Even without counting those who returned from the World Tournament, the survival rate was at most 1%.

Those who survived with such low odds attracted great interest, but the dead were not forgotten either. Among the deceased were family members of high-ranking military officials, Academy Guardians, teachers, and members of the Great Families of the Developers. Ivan's family, for example, is a prime example of this.

Those who escaped the Skylands knew this was the reason for the memorial ceremony. They were incredibly strong compared to their peers, but there were also very old people on Earth. There were also very powerful people. Their strength of 5,000 was not enough to shake this order.

They were weak.

Each of them knew this.

They knew that everyone who died there had died for this reason. They had failed to save their friends or kill their enemies because they were weak. Next time, they would encounter the hunters again. Would the hunters wait for another Kai? Or would someone sacrifice themselves to stop the battle, like Ivan did? The worst part was that someone would have to sacrifice themselves for the others. Like Kevin. Even Isaac, whom they considered a coward, had shown more courage than any of them. They didn't want to be so weak that they had to sacrifice someone. That's why this memorial ceremony was the end for them. Afterwards, they would all leave and grow stronger. Until they encountered the Hunters again, that is.

Jack didn't know what to wear. He would wear whatever he could find on the island. Four years was a long time for a 19-year-old. People inevitably change.

"Wear this. It's better."

At that moment, a girl with black hair appeared behind Jack. She had jet-black eyes, and beneath them was an innate darkness. This didn't detract from her face, though. In fact, Milah looked even more beautiful this way.

She held a black outfit and pants in her hand. It was something Jack hadn't worn in a long time. On the island, he always wore loose clothes that were easy to move in. But now, he understood why he needed to dress like this. He took the clothes from her hand, took a deep breath, and looked at them.

"Yes, you're right. Thank you."

"You know it's not your fault, right?" Milah said. Jack just shook his head. He knew he couldn't escape her gaze. But he couldn't say that he didn't blame himself, either.

"There's nothing to think about, Milah. I'm not the guilty one. The Hunters are the guilty ones. I'm weak. I'm too weak to stop the Hunters from getting what they want."

Jack didn't wait for Milah to leave the room. He undressed and put on the clothes she had given him. He could feel the pity in her eyes as she looked at him. As he was leaving the room, he stopped in front of the door.

"Don't look at me like that, Milah. Those you should be looking at like that are already fallen."

***

In another house, two people lay on two beds. Only the two of them were alive in their house. One was Kronos, with his enormous physique. His wounds had not yet healed. When he took off his clothes, the bandages covering his body were visible. The bandages covered half of his head and nearly his entire body, causing the students to wonder who had beaten him so badly since he arrived. Who would have guessed it was Kai, who was in the same year as Kronos?

Fury was in the other bed. He was badly injured, too. Thanks to the big guy next to him, he hadn't been able to do anything on the plane. While their friends risked their lives, he just sat there. They thought this was pitiful. It wasn't fair. In moments like this, they felt like a bear was sitting on their hearts. It wasn't right for the path they were on.

Stolen story; please report.

"Fury, what will you do after the ceremony? I mean, besides advancing to the second stage?" Kronos asked. Fury closed his eyes and thought for a moment, but he had already decided what to do.

"I'm going into space. I'll find the legions and look for ways to become the Legion King. In the current situation, it's difficult to become your equal. It would be good for me to find a way to make that easier."

Kronos suddenly turned his head and looked at Fury in surprise. Did Fury want to go to space when he was only on the second step?

"Isn't the second step too weak to leave Earth? You should be at least at the third step. It won't be easy for you to move and breathe in space. You couldn't have prepared for this in such a short time."

Fury laughed and shook his head. Then he raised his arm and showed his watch.

"The Legion armor will enable me to move and breathe in space. Since I'm weak, no one will suspect that I have anything valuable. This is safer than being a Third Step. Some might find that troublesome, but I can't push my limits without difficulty," Fury explained. Kronos looked at him in awe. He hadn't even known when Fury had made his departure plan.

"Actually, I wanted to go into space before I started developing. The fact that I no longer have that desire reminds me that I've changed," Kronos blurted out.

"What do you want to do, Kronos?" Fury asked. He was curious about Kronos's plans. He had learned what had happened last time. He knew it wasn't Fenrir's Curse, but rather Kronos's King ability. But if Kronos's ability caused so much trouble, how terrible was Fenrir's Curse?

Fenrir's Curse was powerful because it could affect someone as extraordinary as Fenrir. This was also why Fenrir had grown stronger over the years. If you could overcome the curse's effect, you would gain the power you had while cursed. That's what Kronos had done. Of course, Kronos had only copied Fenrir's Beast ability. It couldn't be compared to the real curse.

"I guess I'll live where the beasts are. Human life is too distant for me. Growing old and stronger in such a place is better. I'll go to a big forest. I'll live that way. Until that day comes," said Kronos.

The day he spoke of was a great goal for him and the others. They could continue living like this, but their anger would never fade. Both Fury and Kronos sensed the silent intent to kill in the room. It emanated from them.

"One day, we will fight the Hunters again. When that time comes, we will stand shoulder to shoulder once more. That is our word."

They had neither agreed nor expressed such a thing. But the moment Kai gave them hope, everything changed. This was no longer something that could fade with time. It would always be remembered until the day their goal was achieved. Until the day they achieved their goal.

***

Shortly after, the ceremony began. They left everything to those who came from Sky Island for the memorial service. They didn't know how the dead had died or who they were. Guardians from the families of the deceased and some military personnel had also come. They didn't know what had happened either. But the dead were their kin. This way, they could learn what had happened and pay their last respects. Jack and the others stood at the front, and nearly 500 friends stood behind them, staring at the ground.

It was actually impossible to put up a monument here in one day. Since no one could explain what had happened, no one was excited about their work. It was pointless to expect a special monument to suddenly appear. This was a place that would develop over time.

But that didn't matter to Jack and the others. They wanted future generations to feel the fighting spirit of the fallen, to admire them, and to strive to be like them. They wanted these monuments to inspire future generations to fight.

At that moment, Jack spoke up.

"I don't know what to say. When I joined the World Tournament, I didn't expect my closest friends to end up in this situation five years later. The reason I'm here isn't because I'm stronger than them; it's because they are stronger than me."

Until I came here, I didn't know why I had become stronger. I had no purpose. I had no ambition, and no matter how long I lived, I would just follow my friends and do what they did."

Now they're gone, and I have to make my own decisions. Actually, Now that I think about it, I remember Kai never pushed me to do anything. He always asked me to come along. Maybe, as he fell, I heard what he said to me in the depths of his eyes. "

'Don't come!'

" I'm sorry, Kai and Kevin, and all my other friends. I'm sorry for being weak." "

" But if you can hear us now, don't worry. We won't be weak anymore! We'll grow stronger and achieve our goal before we die!"

From then on, a powerful aura emanated from each genius, not just here, but everywhere. The other academies could feel it, too—even those from Sky Island. It was as if they had all heard Jack's words and reacted. They all moved at the same time. The hope within them had been ignited simultaneously.

So many things had happened, and when Kai finally gave them hope, it became their hope! When Kai fell from the sky, they fell too. His hatred became their hatred. His desire became their desire.

"We are the Fallens! The geniuses who fell from the Sky Lands!"

In every academy, the Fallen reacted at the same time. As their desire to kill rose to the heavens, everyone present, including those on the second step, took a few steps back. This desire was filled with passion and emotion. It represented a fire that would burn for generations. Even after their hopes died, it would not be extinguished!

"We will destroy the Hunters!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.