118. The Remaining Moon
Natural Ecology Academy, Student Forest Dormitories.
Though the students were informed that this incident was different from previous student brawls, when the members of the Magical Application Academy's student council arrived with their detection equipment, the sight before them still made each one of them frown deeply, their expressions darkening.
Inspector General Mordot Husserl bent down and picked up Draphis' mechanical skull. Despite wearing tight protective gear, the remaining elemental radiation on it still caused slight mental erosion, leaving him feeling slightly dizzy.
He maintained a strictly professional attitude, commanding his magical assistant—a coffin-shaped device resembling an inverted pyramid—to float over and release a [Disintegration Spell]. Under the precise green beam, it carefully chipped away a fragment of the skull.
Beside him, someone used [Mage's Hand] to levitate the fragment and place it in the pre-configured detection box.
While waiting for the analysis, he positioned the skull before him, scanning it using the [Advanced Detection Spell] in his exoskeleton. The magic brain rapidly processed the information, and a moment later, the crystal lens projected an abundance of data.
"This isn't a golem, nor does it resemble a tech-aligned civilization's robot—[Machinists] wouldn't use something as primitive as steam to build a machine."
He muttered, his face cast in blue from the ethereal light.
Mordot turned his head—it was the fire brigade casting spells to extinguish the flames, drawing elements from the atmosphere to summon carbon dioxide, assembling it into dry ice.
The elemental energy in this area was overly abundant, and though it enhanced the effectiveness of their spells, it also made their work significantly more difficult. Mordot quickly heard the curses of the firefighting students:
"The last time I saw elemental upheaval like this was during an internship on the half-plane of [Nyah's Hell]!"
It wasn't just the fires—the air sporadically gave birth to overexcited elementals, mostly small Gamma-tier ones, dashing around and spreading chilling winds, fierce flames, and rock spikes everywhere.
Even the normally well-behaved trees were affected by the elemental fluctuations, growing out of control—Mordot even saw a girl being dragged halfway into the ground by tree roots. Luckily, her screams were loud enough, and the fire brigade's students rushed over with enchanted chainsaws, felling the sinister tree.
Everything around them seemed incredibly magical—or perhaps, to mages, this should be called 'scientific.' Mordot's expression turned even grimmer.
"Father of Crystals, who could have caused this?"
Sylia Ruth held a riot control rifle, her voice trembling in shock as she echoed Mordot's thoughts.
As a newly appointed inspector, facing such astonishing destruction made her feel a sense of unprecedented terror. The previously tranquil campus life now seemed like it had turned into the frontlines of the Galactic Eye battlefield.
Immersed in such an environment, she watched the danger readings on her auxiliary panel rise steadily, the radiation counter clicking away, and she knew that the trees, air, fire, rocks, and even the water could turn into monstrous threats at any moment.
"How terrifying... just astonishing... This level of destruction—Minister, surely a student couldn't possess such power, right? Minister Mordot?"
Her gaze was soft, her green eyes shimmering as she looked to Mordot, the strongest third-year student present.
At that moment, Mordot was clad in a heavy magitech-powered exosuit, resembling a combination of astronaut gear and knight's plate armor. The riot control bolt-action rifle in his left hand, along with the steel-bound magic tome at his waist, exuded a palpable sense of security.
As the favorite of the council president, Mordot's path was about to break through Epsilon and reach Zeta-tier, and he had dutifully managed the academy's order for years, ensuring things ran smoothly without major incidents.
"Minister?"
Yet, Mordot shook his head at the pitiful and adorable newcomer, standing upright once more. The imposing form of his Epsilon-level body seemed tiny amidst this celebration of nature's forces.
"I don't know."
Mordot answered.
"This level of power... maybe it was caused by some weapon or a forbidden spell."
"Could it be that a [Dominion]-class colonial has infiltrated?" Sylia clutched the rifle butt, her voice barely audible. "Wasn't there an incident before, where high-risk Omega Energy users colluded with traitors to send colonial soldiers into the academy, causing a major crisis in Trivira—"
"—The Higgs field hasn't changed, meaning this wasn't caused by evil Omega users."
Mordot interrupted her baseless speculation:
"It's best not to mention Omega matters, especially colonial soldiers..."
Sylia blinked, suddenly realizing her slip, nodding hastily:
"Ah, I forgot the student council forbids any mention of the 'Remaining Moon'..."
"The council doesn't care; there's no ban," Mordot said plainly. "But two years ago, the loved ones of those who perished because of 'Remaining Moon,' including President Corena, might be 'particularly' sensitive."
Sylia nodded, understanding Mordot's kindness.
Two years ago, a high-risk Omega Energy user known as 'Remaining Moon' somehow managed to infiltrate twelve colonial soldiers into Trivira.
Back then, no one knew how they bypassed the academy's tightly woven magical net, nor how they evaded biological screenings, allowing those Zeta-tier colonial soldiers, equipped with Omega Energy, to infiltrate the deepest parts of the academy, stealing vast amounts of precious research and extraordinary knowledge.
That day, the White Candle Interstellar University's inspection division had decided on a surprise inspection and happened to come across Remaining Moon's soldiers. Fortunately, the students on patrol that day were outstanding soon-to-be graduates.
Over a dozen students, leveraging their superior skills and tactics, along with their home-ground advantage, managed to subdue the soldiers.
But that was also the beginning of tragedy.
Upon exposure, Remaining Moon decided to self-destruct the soldiers. Each colonial body experienced a grotesque mutation of its superhuman genes, unleashing an unprecedented Omega Energy disaster.
Survivors described it as a nuclear explosion without dust or flame. Out of 21 faculty and students, 20 died instantly.
Of those who barely survived, most later succumbed to cancer caused by genetic mutations or were left crippled by terminal illnesses.
The disgrace and damage from this incident—no amount of money could compensate for the loss of those knowledge resources.
Seeing this calamity again... it was hard not to recall that terrifying attack that shook the Crystal Spire civilization.
"Remaining Moon ultimately escaped, and no one could ever catch him. To prevent such scum from reappearing, the Education Department spent a fortune installing the Higgs Field."
Mordot reminded her:
"He won't sneak in again. No Omega Energy user can leave Trivira alive. White Candle is no longer what it used to be, not with Minister Balkomon overseeing things. A Kappa-tier powerhouse is akin to a god in the Abyss... you don't need to worry."
"Mm, thank you for comforting me." Sylia blushed slightly, feeling reassured by Mordot's unrefined yet sincere concern.
'Indeed, knowing Omega Energy would be severely suppressed by the Higgs Field, I still worried about colonial soldiers infiltrating... Ha, such pointless fear.'
She thought to herself:
'Senior Mordot is really handsome... I need to seize this opportunity and perform well in front of him...'
The girl's thoughts were something that someone as straightforward as Mordot couldn't care less about.
He was more concerned about the aftermath of this catastrophe... How long would it take to restore order?
From Mordot's perspective, this was undoubtedly the work of a Zeta-tier powerhouse.
"The analysis results will be out soon; maybe this is just an ordinary natural disaster."
As Mordot spoke, the inverted pyramid-shaped assistant suddenly flashed with red light, signaling that someone was approaching. He instantly turned toward the indicated direction, shouting:
"Who's there? Come out!"
Rustle!
A row of riot control rifles immediately aimed at the source. The inspectors pulled the bolts, infusing magic, and the focusing rings on the gun barrels lit up in a brilliant blue as a warning.
Shadows moved among the trees, and after a while, a stiff-faced first-year student stepped forward.
"It's me, don't shoot! I'm one of us!"
The student quickly raised both hands upon seeing the situation:
"I'm Leoz, a first-year student of the Magical Application Academy. I came here to meet a senior to discuss potions—here's my information rune, you can check it!"
He said, waving his student ID and information rune.