[Silhouette] was a more advanced form of [Marionette].

The latter was an Exclusive Skill that Justin had prior to his evolution. It allowed him to manipulate threads made of Mana, utilizing them for a variety of purposes.

However, as [Silhouette], the skill's nature slightly changed.

[Marionette] could be used to control objects by attaching the threads to them, but [Silhoutte] went deeper than that.

It could control Mana itself.

The dark threads were connected to everything around Justin, allowing him to control the Mana in the air, or the Mana of his enemies. Most of these threads were so thin that they were practically invisible, and the dark ones that could be seen were an amalgamation of hundreds, if not thousands of threads.

Thanks to this ability, Justin could rip apart a Spell or attack directed at him—not that he would normally need to-by simply attaching his threads to them and then controlling it. Of course, this all depended on the scale and intensity of the Spell being directed at him.

However, considering the fact that [Silhouette] was an S-Tier Skill... there were only a few things that could cause him trouble.

Kar'eena's Spell wasn't one of them.

****************

Pure silence filled the entire space as the massive Dragon corpse fell to the ground.

The heavy thud created a bit of noise, but everything went still immediately after. As her decapitated head lay a small distance from the rest of her body, and the thick blood oozed out, no one said a word.

The terrified students watched all of this in silence.

They were too stunned to speak. Their Instructor-one of the strongest people they had ever met in their whole life-was so easily killed by a human.

Not even taking into account the absurdity of the situation, the consequence alone was enough to make them all shiver.

Kar'eena was the only reason they were alive, and with her death... came their own assured demise.

'We're going to die...' They began to think.

One after the other, the sentiment began to ring in the head of everyone who watched the swift execution take place.

'We're all going to die! We're going to-!'

"YESSSSS!!!" A loud cry echoed from Justin as he raised his fist into the air, displaying excitement which ran in direct contrast to the despair being shown by the students.

"I did it! I finally got a Class Upgrade!"

There was no way these Dragons could have known this, but the whole reason Justin wanted to fight Kar'eena was because she had turned into a Dragon General.

And the only reason he was interested in a General was because of this upgrade.

Despite his increasing power, as well as his near invincible body, he had been shackled so much by his A-Tier Class.

'No more...!' Justin grinned as he looked at the System Notification before him.

[Congratulations! You Have Advanced To A New Class]

He had been waiting for this for so long.

Belle got her new S-Tier Class after they were done with the massacre in the Dragon Camp, and she had been using every opportunity to lord it over him.

'She got the Arch-Mage Class, and Ater said it means she practically has the strongest Mage Class. At this rate, she's already surpassed Lucielle...'

Justin knew Belle could have ever made it this far if it wasn't for Ater's constant guidance and support, but he couldn't help but feel competitive once she got a Class Advancement before him.

All of that was in the past now, though.

'What new Class will I get?'

[You have thrown away your humanity for a selfish goal, and have made darkness your only true ally. As a result, your New Class is 'No Life King']

'E-eh...?' Justin was a little stunned by the new Class.

'No Life King? What's that?' He wondered. 'I thought I would get something that was an advancement of my Assassin Class... but this has more to do with my status as an Undead, doesn't it?'

He wanted to sigh, but he found that difficult to do with his face still spread out as a smile.

[You Will Soon Begin The Acclimation Process]

'A-ah... yeah, Ater mentioned this.' Justin's thoughts quickly snapped to reality.

Belle had experienced her fair share of Acclimation, which simply meant being in a comatose state for a short while, and apparently Rey's coma was partly due to acclimating to his new -Class.

Such was the case when one transcended the limits of A-Tier and reached the realm of the Absolute.

'In any case, since it'll happen soon, it's time to round things up here.' Justin turned to Belle, who swiftly appeared right next to him.

"Congrats... I guess." She seemed a little sulky, which made him laugh a little.

Belle was meant to be happy for his progress, considering how they were partners and they could be of better use to Ater now, but she couldn't help but feel a little threatened since the boy was going to catch up to her very soon.

"Let's kill as many of them as we can before it hits." Justin said to her, and she nodded in total

agreement.

Their focus was turned to the Dragons, and the merciless gaze they used to look at the powerless Newts made it clear that they stood no chance at all.

Once again, this would be

massacre.

However...

~RUMBLE-

... Perhaps it wasn't too late for a miracle.

As soon as what sounded like a thundercloud echoed in the sky, Belle and Justin exchanged

knowing glances.

Before they could move from their respective positions, though-

-B00000000000000000000000000000000MMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!~

Two surges of white electricity descended from above in heavenly judgment, landing

perfectly on the two who stood there.

Pained screams echoed out of their lungs, and that same instant, Justin completely blacked

out while Belle clung to her consciousness.

"Oh? Looks like we have rather durable ones here..." A surprised voice came forth, just as soon

as the noise of the lightning receded.

"Indeed." Another voice, this time calm, responded.

Two Dragons-both of them Generals-suddenly appeared in the sky as they watched the entire scene with surprised and calm expressions respectively.

They were dressed in pure white, with designs of light blue and hints of gold on their attires. Their styles were different, but it was clear that the two Generals were donning some kind of

uniform.

"No matter... they won't be able to hold out for too long now that reinforcements are here." The calm one spoke again, his gaze resting on the crater where Belle was now holding the

unconscious Justin.

It was clear at that moment that the tide of battle had completely changed. Every student's eyes brightened up the moment they laid eyes on their savor, instantly

forgetting the despair they experienced after the death of their Instructor.

The reason for their relief wasn't merely because more Dragons had shown up.

It wasn't even because they were Dragon Generals.

A single look at the glowing insignia branded on the chest pockets of their uniform, and their

easily recognizable faces told every single student watching what they needed to know.

Why?

Well... these were the esteemed members of the strongest Squad of the Dragon Empire.

-The First Squad of the Frost Dragon Lord.

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Thanks for reading!