The Unvanquished: Child of Nihility-Chapter 68: Reaper Wake

The last of the three bonus Chapter (Chapter 68: Council of the EDA)

Inside the high-altitude Council Meeting Hall of Eden Domineer Academy, silence reigned.

At the top floor, in a massive and luxurious meeting room, a long black-gold table gleamed beneath the ambient light.

Fourteen seats – black-furnished thrones inscribed with layered glyphs – seven to each side of the radiant black-gold table. On its surface, holographic strands pulsed with trial data, individual assessments, and monitoring feeds from across the academy.

All were seated.

All except one.

Seated at the head was Principal Stuart di Milla, the Land Ruler of Eden. Leaning into his seat, eyes still closed as before, the usual detached aura lingered – as if the conversation going on had nothing to do with him. And yet, the occasional tap of his fingers against the table made it clear: nothing happening here escaped his awareness.

"My question is – why do we need to recruit a new instructor for the first-year unique class when we have more than a dozen qualified instructors already?" a stern voice challenged. "We can’t afford to waste resources. I support what the Fifth Elder said – this cannot be allowed."

Whispers spread through the meeting room...

The man in a white-gold allium suit with interlocked black lines – resembling a DC superhero from Earth’s ancient comics – who had opened the meeting earlier said, "All this was arranged by our Principal. And the worst part is, everything about this new instructor is shrouded in mystery – which baffles me. Place your vote." Draco Malfoy, the Third Elder of the EDA and a man of great ambition, spoke bluntly, even raising a motion as if disregarding the Principal’s authority.

Surprisingly, Principal Stuart’s expression didn’t flinch. Instead, his finger lazily tapped the surface of the black-gold table four times.

And the hall fell into eerie silence.

For some reason, the sound of his tapping felt like judgment – like it carried a silent message:

"You dare? It’s final. Move to the next discussion."

Draco Malfoy, clearly deflated, sat back in his seat beside Vice Principal Evans, on the left-hand side.

"Concerning the three anomalies..." This time it was the Second Elder, Vice Principal Evans, who spoke – but he didn’t finish what he was about to say when –

Suddenly.

The air shifted.

The lights above flickered once – then dimmed completely.

A pulse.

A hum.

A flare of crimson light outside the translucent dome.

The Monument Tower had moved.

Every head turned upward. The projection bloomed in the sky – massive, golden, irrefutable.

---

-----

Candidate: Morca Sherman Nihility

Trial: Comprehension – Completed

Result: Perfect Mystery of Rere Skill Achieved

Skill: First Slash (Rere Grade)

Mystery Tier: Perfect

Bloodline Insight: Forbidden Tier Compatibility.

-----

---

For a long moment, the Council was frozen.

Then–

"Impossible..." whispered one of the Neutralists, barely audible.

Lilly Abigor, the First Elder, slowly stood. Regal in a crimson-trimmed gown of layered black silk, her gray eyes were sharp – measured. "The Monument Tower hasn’t self-projected since the Infernal Apocalypse Incident. And now this...?" She turned to Stuart, voice calm but severe. "You knew this would happen."

Stuart di Milla gave no reply.

"Evans." Her voice cut across the table.

Evans Tamar, Second Elder, leaned back in his seat – robed in slate and silver – his expression unreadable. "I said he was dangerous. I warned you about this boy the moment his Strength and Reflex scores came through. That bloodline reading was no accident – it was suppression. And now the Monument confirms it."

Draco Malfoy, the Third Elder, let out a slow breath. Clad in his signature white-gold allium suit, he pressed both hands together as if in prayer. "So the third anomaly has finally been claimed by the Tower. One born from nothing... but drawing the attention of everything." He was truly impressed this time. The reason he had been so against the recruitment of a new instructor was because he had planned to send a subordinate of his to fill that role – according to tradition.

But once he learned that someone else had been selected, he couldn’t accept it. After all, who in their right mind wouldn’t want to teach a future legend – especially when three anomalies were expected to appear?

A silence stretched again.

Then came the ripple.

The Traditionalists stirred first – three of them, two men and one woman cloaked in deep red and black. Their faces twisted with barely concealed scorn.

"Forbidden Tier compatibility? This must be a misread."

"Or a fabrication. No one comprehends a rere skill to Perfect Tier – and in just one or so minutes. Not without outside interference."

"He’s dangerous. He should be detained. His bloodline may breach genetic doctrine."

The Opportunists – smiling wolves in elegant robes – leaned forward. One of them chuckled softly.

"Dangerous? No... valuable."

"A student capable of this is worth investing in."

"We could elevate him. Control him. Let him represent Eden abroad in the incoming Tri-State Competition. He can lead the new recruits."

The Neutralists sat silent – shifting only slightly in their seats, watching to see which side gained ground.

And at the end of the table, veiled behind light-filtering masks, the two unknown Balance Elders did not speak. But one of them turned their head toward Stuart di Milla ever so slightly.

It was enough to make the Principal’s fingers twitch.

Finally, he spoke.

"None of you are asking the right question."

All eyes turned.

"You argue about power. Influence. Security." His voice dropped low, as if speaking to the ground itself. "But what you fail to ask is – why did the Monument Tower broadcast this at all ?"

That silenced even the Opportunists.

Because they all knew the same truth:

The Tower only projects of its own will.

Its core was sealed. Unknown. Beyond even their command. That it moved now – after remaining dormant for decades – meant only one thing:

It recognized Morca.

Stuart opened his eyes for the first time since the meeting began. His gaze darkened.

It watched him enter the Strength Trial.

It flared during his Blank activation in Reflexes.

And now, after Comprehension... it speaks.

He turned to the others, his finger tapped the table thrice.

"This boy is no anomaly." His voice dropped to a whisper.

"He is a signal."

And high above the academy – silent, ancient, ever-burning – the Monument Tower pulsed again.

A second heartbeat.

---

For centuries, the Council of Fourteen had stood as the spine of Eden Domineer Academy’s internal authority – a structure built not just on rank or lineage, but on balance. A design shaped by necessity, not preference. Within its black-gold walls, power did not simply move. It watched. Waited. Chose.

The Council was not one mind.

It was four.

Four factions, each formed around philosophies older than Eden’s current sky-reaching spires. Each with different visions of what the academy should become.

The Traditionalists sat cloaked in certainty. Three among them – two men and one woman – descended from three of Eden’s most ancient bloodlines. They revered the old doctrines: the sanctity of inherited power, the purity of bloodline cultivation, and the need to preserve the status quo. To them, Morca was not a phenomenon. He was an infection. Something wild. Untamed. An unpredictable thread that risked unraveling their carefully preserved hierarchy.

The Opportunists, by contrast, were wolves in the robes of merchants and reformers. Their ideology was simple: power should be used, not feared. If the academy could produce a genius, then it should claim and parade him as proof of dominance. If a weapon emerged, sharpen it – and sell its glory to the world. Their smiles were silver-tongued, but their eyes gleamed with hunger. To them, Morca was not a threat – he was a resource.

The Neutralists existed not to lead, but to weigh. Their votes rarely came first, but often decided the final sway. They valued balance in public image, legal precedent, and systemic stability. Not idealists. Not manipulators. They acted as the academy’s internal compass, though often slow to react. Most remained silent even now, their minds spinning on whether Morca’s emergence would stabilize Eden’s reputation... or shatter it.

And then, there were the Balance Elders – two masked figures whose true allegiances were never spoken aloud. They never took sides openly. They never raised their voices. No official records named them as a faction, but everyone at the table knew: they were not mere observers. Their presence was doctrine. Their role was to ensure that no single ideology dominated too long. When Balance Elders turned their heads... entire centuries shifted course.

Most believed the Balance Elders answered only to the Monument Tower.

But even that was speculation. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

In this moment, after the flare of forbidden-tier revelation, the Balance Elders had not moved. Not spoken.

But one had turned.

Just once.

Toward Stuart di Milla.

And that single tilt of the head said more than any words ever could.

There would be no vote.

Not yet.

Not on this.

Because Morca’s emergence wasn’t just an anomaly – it was a test. One that hadn’t been cast by the Council... but by something deeper.

---

Above them, unseen from the chamber, the Monument Tower pulsed again.

A second heartbeat.

A reminder.

The system had made its move.

Now, the Council would have to choose their next step of action.

But before anyone could speak, the black-gold table flickered – sputtered – then projected something new.

Not trial data.

Not a name.

A warning.

---

-----

[INTERNAL SYSTEM ALERT]

[Sequence: GENESIS NULL | Protocol: REAPER WAKE]

[Detected Activity: Dimensional Thread Instability – Origin Unknown]

[Containment Status: Breach Level 2 – Pending Classification]

-----

---

Every head at the table turned to Principal Stuart di Milla.

But the Principal wasn’t looking at the alert.

His gaze had already drifted toward the Monument Tower’s direction.

Voice low. Calm. Certain.

"They’re waking up too early..."

He stood for the first time.

And the golden light trembled.