Chapter 91: Sophomore Class
It happened slowly at first.
The snarling wave of monsters pressing against the camp’s shields began to thin. The flying leeches flew away into the night sky. The six-legged panthers stopped throwing themselves at the barricades and slinked back into the forest.
Within an hour, the forest was quiet.
The Abyssal horde wasn’t retreating in formation. They were scattering. Without the Queen’s psychic link to guide them, the corruption that drove them lost its grip. They became ordinary beasts again, confused and frightened, eager to get far away from the camp’s lights.
Base Camp was officially secure.
Inside the medical tent, Henry sat on a bed with his shirt off. His right arm was a mess of bruises, but nothing was broken. He had gotten lucky. If his shield hadn’t absorbed most of the impact, he would be dead.
Maeve stood beside him, wrapping clean bandages around his arm. Her glasses were pushed up on her nose, and her expression was focused.
"Hold still," she said. "You’re making it tighter than it needs to be."
"My apologies, Lady Tactician." Henry sat still as a board. "I am simply grateful to be of service."
Maeve paused and looked at him. "You can just call me Maeve."
"I could," Henry agreed seriously. "But I won’t."
Holden leaned against the tent flap, watching them with his arms crossed. He smirked. The former arrogant noble who had tried to bully Team Soup in the wilderness was now sitting shirtless and bruised, treating his thirteen year old sister like she was a four-star general.
"You know she’s just wrapping a bandage, right?" Holden said. "She’s not knighting you."
Henry turned to him with absolute sincerity in his eyes. "She saved my life. Twice tonight, her orders kept me alive. My squad owes her a debt that cannot be measured in currency or favors."
He looked back at Maeve. "I pledge my squad’s full loyalty to Team Soup. From this moment forward, we serve at your command. All you need to do is ask."
Maeve tied off the bandage and patted his shoulder. "Just do what I say on the battlefield and we’re even."
Henry looked like she had just handed him a sacred relic.
Holden pushed off the tent flap. "Come on, hero. Let the medics check the rest of you."
Henry stood, wincing slightly, and gave Maeve a bow before leaving.
Maeve watched him go, then looked at Holden. Her eyes were soft but tired.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
"i feel better now," she said.
He ruffled her hair, and she swatted his hand away with a scowl that didn’t quite hide her smile.
Vespera’s command tent was cold.
The woman stood behind a table covered in maps and reports. Her black uniform was clean, not a single drop of monster blood on it.
"Voss," she said. Her voice was flat.
"Instructor." Holden stepped inside. The tent flap closed behind him.
Vespera’s cold eyes locked onto him. "Report."
"I found the ruin you mentioned. It was cleared out, but I grabbed something before I left." Holden reached into his pack and pulled out the ancient military map. He unrolled it on her table.
Vespera looked down at the yellowed parchment. Her expression didn’t change, but her fingers twitched slightly. She recognized the markings.
"This is a border fortification chart," she said. " This shows defensive positions that don’t exist anymore."
"Figured you’d want it," Holden said.
Vespera picked up the map carefully, studying the faded ink lines. Then her eyes slid back to him.
"The Abyssal Hive is dead," she said.
"Yeah. Lucky break for us."
"A Rank 2, 6-Star Arachnid Queen. The source of the corruption infecting the entire region." Vespera set the map down. "It died approximately two hours ago. Around the same time you arrived at camp."
"Crazy timing," Holden said.
"A Rank 2 Hive doesn’t just die, Voss."
"Must have been bad berries. The woods are dangerous, Instructor."
Vespera stared at him for a long moment. Holden met her gaze with an easy, slightly bored expression.
He knew she didn’t buy it. She was Rank 4. She wasn’t stupid. But she also didn’t have proof.
"Get out of my tent," she said finally.
"Yes ma’am."
Holden left, hiding a smirk.
Three days later, the massive academy transports arrived.
The flying fortresses descended through the clouds and landed in the clearing outside Base Camp. Students boarded in groups, glad to be going home.
The flight back to Vanguard Academy took six hours. Holden spent most of it sleeping with his head against Lyra’s shoulder while Renna played cards with Emric and Henry’s squad across the aisle.
When the transports touched down on the academy’s landing pad, the entire school was waiting.
Thousands of students lined the courtyards. Banners hung from the buildings. Instructors stood in formation along the edges of the crowd.
And at the very front, the Headmaster stood on a raised platform.
He was an old man with a long beard and a voice that could carry across a battlefield without a microphone.
"Students," he said, and the courtyard went silent. "The Borderland Expedition has concluded. Out of three hundred participants, two hundred and forty-seven returned. Fifty-three did not."
A moment of quiet respect for the dead.
"But you survived. You faced the Abyssal corruption and held your ground. And among you, one team distinguished themselves above all others."
Holden felt Renna grab his arm.
"Through exceptional tactical planning, flawless combat coordination, and the highest monster core harvest in expedition history, Team Soup, supported by Squad Henry, came out on top."
The courtyard erupted.
Renna screamed. Henry’s squad stood tall, beaming with pride.
Holden just smiled.
He looked at Maeve, who was standing with the support staff. She pushed her glasses up and gave him a small nod.
That nod meant more than the crowd’s cheers.
"Front and center," an instructor called out.
Holden led his team up to the platform. The Headmaster looked down at them with something that might have been approval.
The instructor stepped forward carrying a small velvet case. She opened it to reveal five silver insignias, each one shaped like a crossed sword and shield.
"Sophomore pins," the Headmaster said. "You’ve earned them."
One by one, the instructor pinned the silver badges to their collars. Renna. Emric. Lyra. Then Holden.
"Second-Year status grants you access to upper-level training facilities, advanced course selection, and private accommodations in the Prime Zone," the instructor said. "Your assigned residence is Villa Seven."
Renna gasped. "Villa Seven? The big one with the balcony and the garden?"
The instructor gave her a flat look. "Yes."
"That’s so cool! I heard the Prime Zone villas have bathtubs! Not the shared ones! And a kitchen! And separate bedrooms! Oh my gosh, we need to pick rooms right now, who wants the biggest one, actually I want the biggest one, but Emric you can have the quiet one, and Henry your squad can take the lower floor."
"Renna," Emric said calmly. "Breathe."
They walked through the academy gates together, Team Soup ahead of them, still buzzing with excitement. Henry walked slightly behind Maeve, acting as an unofficial guard. Emric was already calculating the villa’s square foot based on visible architectural features.
Holden looked at the silver pin on his collar.
Rank 1. Publicly, that’s all he was. A lucky freshman who got promoted early.
But in his pocket, the weight of a Rank 3 Aether-Battery reminded him of the truth. He was so much more. And he was getting closer to proving it.
He just needed more points.
The villa came into view at the end of the Prime Zone’s main street. Three stories of a white building with wide balconies, tall windows, and a small garden in the front.
Renna ran through the front door screaming about claiming rooms.
Holden watched his friends disappear inside, laughing and shoving each other, and felt something warm settle in his chest.
They had made it.