Capítulo 224: 221: A Plague of Phantoms V
"Winner! Chase Kingston!" Baset exclaimed once everyone had taken their seat in the classroom.
About an hour had passed since Alberto's and mine's duel thanks to the massive explosions from Bone-lasher's Draco Lance and the screaming and fleeing students, campus security quickly arrived to figure out what was going on. At first, they assumed that Bone-lasher was a rogue evo and tried to attack and restrain him with titans, but that ended badly for the titans. It was only after Baset spoke up that everything calmed down.
"I don't think there is any doubt about who won." Iris said softly.
"Yeah, especially since Bone-lasher burnt that other evo to hell. There weren't even any ashes left after he was done." Bo added.
I glanced over at Bone-lasher, whom I hadn't yet recalled to my farm crystal. Bo's statement wasn't entirely true since Bone-lasher still had the crystal that he yanked out of the Lowell Titan's chest hidden away under one of the movable folds of his dark crystal armor.
"I OBJECT!" Loki exclaimed. I groaned and looked over at the annoying Paragon. He was standing behind Alberto and glaring intently at Baset.
"Why do you object Loki?" Baset asked. Loki looked to me with a scowl and then pointed a finger at Bone-lasher.
"That…thing! It changed in the middle of the battle, and while you thought you were being slick, Kingston, I sensed you feeding mana into it! You did something to cause this…this mutation, you casted some sort of spell!" Loki exclaimed.
"Mutation?" Bone-lasher muttered, spundkng slightly confused. I rolled my eyes at Loki.
"As good as I am at creating spells Loki, I can't cast a spell without casting a spell sigil. If I had cast a spell, you would have seen the spell sigil." I replied.
"Then how do you explain that!" Loki yelled and motioned once again to Bone-lasher.
"That is a transcended evolution…." I started then stood and walked over to Bone-lasher. "…well a true transcended evolution in Bone-lasher's case. Bone-lasher as well as any evo created using shaping have a special crystal inside them that generates mana. Once certain conditions are met that crystal will resonate with the evos splicer's farm crystal and generate a mana overload that forces a physiological change in the evo. I call this transcended evolution."
"But that evo was created in a techno-splicing factory! How does it have one of these crystals?" Loki demanded.
"Body modification." Jane spoke up. Loki's eyes turned to her in a menacing glare. However, Jane managed to ignore it and continue on. "Chase learned earlier in the year that he can use body modification to turn regular evos into Transcended evos, which makes them stronger than an ascended evo."
"Bah! It's stronger than an ascended evo! Preposterous!" Loki barked.
"Considering all we've seen Chase's evos do…that sounds like a distinct possibility…" Astrid said, earning a spiteful glare from Loki.
"That still doesn't explain what he did to his evo with his mana!" Loki exclaimed.
"I forced his evolution, something I don't remember being against the rules. Especially since Alberto was controlling his evo directly with his own mana." I said slyly. Loki curled his upper lip at me and then smiled viciously.
"But you did toss him an enchanted item! Thus meddling in the duel!" Loki shouted.
"That was after your son's evo went berserk and attacked us! If anything invalidates the duel, it's that fact!" I exclaimed.
"Are we just going to ignore the fact that his evo could cast spells, or am I the only one that finds that weird?" Bo asked suddenly. Alberto tensed up considerably while Loki just looked cockily at Bo.
"Why would that be…weird, as you said. Kingston's evo was able to cast a spell as well?" Loki asked.
"Yeah, after Chase gave him an enchanted item. That thing did it without one, almost like a splicer." Bo observed.
"Yes…that is…peculiar." Baset spoke up. Her tone and slower speech told me she was very selective with her words.
"It is simply the difference between Gods-given talent and the rabble that passes itself off as splicers. I've found an ancient ritual that grants evos…unique abilities and helped my son perform it after he spliced his Lowell Titan." Loki said.
At the very mention of a ritual, Jane, Iris, Astrid, and I all tensed. The look that Astrid shot me told me that she was thinking the same thing I was. Meanwhile, Alberto looked like he was about to throw up but then quickly masked that look with one void of emotion.
"Ancient! No wonder it was so crazy! You probably didn't do that ritual right since it was so old and messed up that evo!" Bo exclaimed. Loki curled his upper lip at the very mention of him making a mistake.
"I am a Paragon, you insolent brat! I don't make mistakes." Loki said with a sanctimonious tone.
"Hey! I'm the only one that gets to call Bo a brat, you pompous, hair-brained asshat!" I snapped, jumping up from my seat.
"And nobody insults my son! Paragon or not!" Nate growled, standing beside me. Loki looked at the two of us and chuckled.
"Cute, you actually think you're intimidating." Loki chuckled. Bone-lasher stepped in front of Nate and I and growled low in his throat.
"They may not be you spineless weakling, but I assure you I am!" He said menacingly.
"A evo dares…!" Loki started shouting only to be cut off.
"I admit defeat!" Alberto yelled suddenly. All eyes turned to him. He was staring down at his hands on the table. "I lost! I could barely control Ralrias when the fight began, where Chase didn't even need to control his evo. Just give it a vague command, and it listened. I lost the moment I lost control of my evo, so I admit defeat."
Loki spun his son around in his seat, grabbed Alberto by the collar, and then yanked him out of his seat. The action was so swift and out of character for the Paragon that it caught everyone's off guard.
"You idiot! You think your defeat is an option for you! You're a Silva! The son of a paragon, my son! If you look weak, then I look…!"
Without even thinking, I channeled accelerate attribute mana throughout my body and dashed around Bone-lasher to Loki, time started to move at a snails pace as I ran and managed to get to Loki before anyone could react. Grabbing him by the throat, I yanked him away from Alberto, pushing him as hard as I could. As I stopped channeling mana and slowed down, Loki was sent flying into the far wall, crashing into it with a force that nearly cracked it.
"Chase!" Jane and Iris yelled once they realized what I'd done. Alberto fell to the ground, rubbing his throat and looking over at his father, who'd collapsed on the ground. Astrid got up from her seat and knelt down to check on Alberto while Damon jumped up and stood in front of him like a bulwark to keep Loki from getting close again.
"Don't start you two! He just assaulted one of our classmates, Paragon or not, whether I like you or not, I'm not going to sit there and let that happen." I said sternly. Loki managed to stand up and looked at me with hate filled eyes.
"THAT'S IT KINGSTON! I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD FOR THIS!" Loki bellowed.
"No, you won't!" Baset snapped as she stormed up the stairs and stopped on our flight, then marched over to Loki. "You assaulted one of my students inside my class. Forgetting that fact that he is your son, that is deplorable and unacceptable behavior, definitely not befitting a Paragon."
"Oh, come off it, Baset! You know paragon's do far worse than grab their son by the collar!" Loki sneered.
"Whether I know it or not, I have not witnessed it. I have, however, seen you do it to your son while trying to convince him to reverse his decision to accept defeat. That is tampering with an official duel, a crime in most countries…including Spain. One that would result in you losing your Paragonship." Baset said coldly.
For a brief moment, Loki looked panicked, but he quickly masked his emotions and looked at Baset with a huff.
"Fine. He lost…." Loki said, then looked to his son. He shook his head and huffed. "Such a utter disappointment. The son of the world's foremost expert on splicing couldn't defeat simple gutter trash from America of all places."
"That says a lot more about you than it does, yer boy!" Grandpa Seamus spoke up. "If yer supposed to be the best and ye' boy still lost, then either ya suck at teaching or you're not as good as ya thought."
"Shut up, normie trash!" Loki snapped. I popped my claws and channeled burn attribute into them, igniting them in fire and then pointing them at Loki.
"Call my Grandpa trash again, and it'll be the last thing you ever say." I warned. Loki paled slightly but didn't show any sign of weakness. Instead, he sneered at me and then looked to Baset.
"I believe I will take my leave, Baset. Thank you for allowing me to visit." Loki said.
"I believe that would be best…" Baset replied.
Loki walked around Baset and pasted me on his way to the door. When he reached the top of the stairs, he paused in front of the door, then turned and looked at Alberto.
"Alberto, it would probably be for best you stay here during winter break. Spend time reflecting on your failure and how by accepting this travesty, you've failed Spain and, worst of all, me." Loki huffed, then turned on his heel, throwing the doors open and storming out of the lecture hall.
I looked to Alberto, and he was blankly staring down at the floor. I could see a million thoughts running through his head and the look of utter devastation and betrayal in his eyes. Baset started to say something, but a quick shake of the head from Astrid stopped her. Instead, she walked back down to her desk while I returned to our table.
***
I groaned loudly as I stood and stretched, earning me a slap on the butt from my grandpa, who made a sign for me to be quiet. Somehow, class went on after everything that happened. Baset went more into detail about what she expected from us over the break in regard to researching our field of expertise.
In regards to Alberto and the terms of our duel, he was honor bound to learn about shaping. I was supposed to work out when with him after class. Bo was adamant about shaping becoming his field of expertise, which had some pushback from Baset since he had such obvious talent with traditional splicing.
In the end, Grandpa Seamus came up with a compromise. He would have both traditional splicing and shaping as his field of expertise, and Baset would figure out a way to have him study both.
Iris snowed interest in wanting to take utility spell casting and research, to which Astrid said what was the point in going into spell casting since the world's foremost expert was in our class. That then somehow turned into me teaching a class on spell casting once a week at the college once Baset came back. Of course, I was against this because I'm a student, I have a whole company to run, and I hate the idea of coming to class every day and having to teach.
Literally, everyone, including Grandpa Seamus, overruled me. In the end, I caved.
Jane was unsure of what she wanted to go into as her expertise, as did Damon and Astrid, but all three said they wanted to be in my spell casting class once it started up.
Throughout the rest of the class, Bone-lasher sat quietly behind our table, listening to everything being said. I honestly thought about recalling him a few times, but then I remembered the crystal that he was hiding in his armor and didn't want to risk it getting damaged until I could examine it.
"Okay, if there is nothing else, I'd like to end class on this today." Baset said. Astrid suddenly raised her hand.
"Is nobody going to mention the fact that that Chase's evo is still here or the fact that he cast a modified version of a spell that we've all seen Chase use from a enchanted item that we've all seen Chase use?" She asked.
"Yeah, what was with those words he said while he was casting too? It added a second spell sigil around the first." Damon said. Baset sighed and then looked to me and Bone-lasher for answers.
"He used a chant. You can say a simple chant while you are casting a spell that kind of acts as a secondary spell cast and adds additional effects to the original spell depending on the verbiage. You have to be careful, though, with that because the wrong phrase or words can cause the spell to backfire completely." I explained then looked over at Bone-lasher. "Though I'm surprised you knew about it Bone."
"I learned from watching you from inside my biome!" Bone-lasher said proudly, his twin tails shaking happily. "I also learned I can cast spells inside my biome using your items since they are touching you. I practiced that chant a bunch of times before I used it today!"
"WHAT?!" Everyone screamed. Everyone stated at Bone-lasher with mixed expressions of shock and disbelief, myself included. I was surprised I didn't notice that Bone-lasher had been casting spells inside my farm crystal.
"Well now, Starlight, it seems like ya go yerself one smart evo." Grandpa Seamus said.
"I've never heard of an evo able to think things through with such clarity." Baset said. I eventually shrugged.
"That's true transcendence." I said simply, then turned and petted Bone-lasher on his head. "Speaking of spells, can I have that ring back, Bone?"
Bone-lasher, who'd been enjoying the head pats, suddenly froze and then turned his head away from me. Despite not having a human face, the look of guilt was all over his.
"Ummm…Boss…please don't be mad…" Bone-lasher said. Bone-lasher held his hand out and opened his hand. Inside his hand were the melted and cooled remains of the Draco Lance enchanted ring. I blinked a few times as my mind processed what I was seeing, and while I was doing that, Bo leaned over and saw the ring.
"Oh my gods, Bone-lasher melted Chase's ring!" Bo exclaimed.
"I'm sorry, Boss!" Bone-lasher exclaimed.
As I stared at Bone-lasher's hand, I noticed something off about his blackish purple armor. I grabbed Bone-lasher's hand and made him turn it to see the back of his forearm. I saw the runes for the Draco Lance spell burned into the armor on his arm. I ran my hand over the spot and realized it had been etched into it. It didn't look like it had been carved either.
"Something wrong, Boss?" Bone-lasher asked.
"You have the spell you used etched into your armor…I think you destroyed the ring when you used the spell, and your armor recorded the runes." I said.
"Wait, what?" Jane exclaimed and jumped up from her seat and rushed over to look at Bone-lasher's arm. Her eyes widened when she saw the etchings.
"Gods above! Just when you think things can't get any weirder, Chase and his evos find another way to prove us wrong!" Damon exclaimed.
"In my defense, I didn't know he could do that! Plus, he just transcended an hour ago, I haven't had time to run some tests!" I exclaimed defensively.
"Well, I am going to end class before we find out Chase's evos can travel in time. Have a good break, everyone!" Baset said hurriedly.
REFLEXIONES DE LOS CREADORES 
Hutexa_The_Djinn
Hutexa_The_Djinn HUTEXA_THE_DJINN here! Apologies! I know this was supposed to be a Side story chapter but I really wanted to get this chapter posted so I changed the order around. Thank you for all the positive comments and well wishes. If you really want to help the novel, leave a review or a few power stones. Thank you for everything!
Estado de energía semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Piedra de
Poder