The Forgotten Legacy"

The sun rose lazily over the vast realm of the Hunter’s Academy, painting the sky in hues of crimson and gold. The battle with the demon wolf was behind them, but the wound in Nero’s chest throbbed—a reminder that he was far from strong enough.

Nero sat silently under the shade of the academy’s ancient oak, his sharp eyes scanning the distance. Kain and Lena sparred nearby, while Arden honed his blade under the morning sun. Yet Nero’s mind wasn’t there.

‘That thing nearly killed me… If I hadn’t awakened that fragment of my old self…’

His fists clenched. ‘I’m still weak.’

Memories of his former life flashed—visions of his arts, forbidden techniques, and hidden knowledge sealed away centuries ago. Among them… his old office, hidden deep beneath the academy’s grounds—abandoned and long forgotten. There, he had once stored the Valtore Codex—a collection of demon-hunting techniques, cursed arts, and secret combat methods lost to time.

It was time to reclaim it.

---

Night fell, casting a heavy silence over the academy grounds. Nero stood at the edge of the training field, cloaked in black, face hidden under his hood. He glanced around—the guards were few, and the students resting.

“The office… should still be sealed under the old instructor’s tower,” he whispered to himself.

Rumor had it, a new professor had taken over the abandoned quarters—a man known as Professor Darius, one with a cold stare and an even colder heart.

Nero moved swiftly, his body a shadow beneath the moonlight. Scaling the old stone tower, he reached the window and peered inside. Darius sat at the desk, pouring over ancient scrolls, unaware of the presence lingering above him.

Minutes passed before the professor yawned and left the room, leaving the place silent. Nero dropped soundlessly through the window.

The air was thick with dust and decay, but his senses flared as his hand grazed the old bookshelf. He found it—an insignia burned into the wood, the Valtore crest. Pressing the symbol, the shelf creaked open, revealing a narrow, spiraling staircase descending into the earth.

‘Still intact… after all this time.’

He slipped inside, sealing the door behind him.

---

The passage smelled of damp stone and old blood. Nero’s boots echoed against the stone steps as he descended until he reached the hidden chamber—his old sanctuary. Weapons, scrolls, and relics lined the walls, their power dormant.

In the center, atop a stone pedestal, lay a thick, black leather-bound tome—the Valtore Codex.

Nero approached it with reverence, fingertips tracing the ancient letters carved into its cover. Memories surged through him—of battles fought, demons slain, and the cost of power.

“I swore never to use you again… but the world has changed,” Nero muttered.

He took the Codex, feeling the weight of his legacy in his hands.

---

By dawn, he returned to the secluded training ground, far beyond the academy’s watchful eyes—a ruined temple swallowed by vines and earth, where no students dared to tread.

Opening the Codex, Nero’s eyes scanned the faded ink. Techniques long thought lost to the world.

“Blood Chain Binding” – A forbidden art that shackled demonic energy.

“Shadow Severance” – A blade technique that split even spirits.

“Heartbane” – A deadly curse that targeted the core of monsters.

His heart raced. He had grown soft. He had relied too much on instinct, forgetting the very foundation that once made him the strongest.

No more.

---

The days that followed were grueling.

Nero trained in solitude, his wounds reopening, his muscles screaming in agony—but he pressed on.

Blood splattered across the cracked earth as he practiced Blood Chain Binding, forcing his own cursed energy into shape, summoning crimson chains that lashed out and bound invisible enemies.

He failed. Again. And again.

But he rose each time.

“I’m not that weak boy… I’m Valtore’s last heir…” he growled.

---

Lena noticed Nero’s absence. “Where the hell is he?” she hissed, pacing the courtyard.

Kain sighed. “Knowing Nero? Training. He’s been different since that fight… like he’s chasing something.”

“Yeah,” Arden added. “Like he’s remembered who he really is.”

---

Elsewhere, Nero collapsed, breath ragged, chains fading into blood mist. Days without sleep had pushed him to the edge.

Yet, in the quiet of the ruined temple, he smirked.

“I did it…” he whispered, staring at the fading mark of the chain.

He opened the Codex again, this time setting his sights on Shadow Severance.

Night fell again, and Nero stood in front of a large boulder. His eyes glowed faintly as he summoned cursed energy to his blade.

“Shadow Severance…” he whispered.

The sword hummed, vibrating with dark power before he swung. A thin, invisible slash cut through the air, slicing the boulder clean in half.

The boulder crumbled, crashing to the earth.

Nero fell to his knees, a grin stretching across his face.

“I’m getting closer…”

---

Weeks passed.

The academy buzzed with news of the upcoming Ranking Reassessment. Students trained, fought, and clawed for a chance to rise.

But Nero didn’t care. His goal wasn’t ranks anymore. It was strength. Power that would crush anything in his way.

His final test was Heartbane—the deadliest technique in the Codex. A curse that required a piece of his own soul.

Standing under the moonlight, Nero bit his thumb, drawing blood, then smeared it across the Codex’s final page.

The symbols glowed red.

Nero felt his soul pull tight, his body shaking violently. The curse took shape—a dark sigil burned into his chest.

Pain unlike anything he’d felt wracked his body.

He screamed.

But he endured.

---

By the time dawn broke, Nero stood, body trembling, but alive. The mark still burned on his chest.

“I did it… All of it,” he whispered.

He looked up, eyes cold and focused.

“I swear… I will never be that weak again.”

---

The Sanctum Bell rang across the academy.

The Ranking Reassessment was here.

Lena, Kain, and Arden stood at the gathering ground, eyes searching the crowd.

“Where the hell is he?” Kain muttered.

Just then, Nero appeared—cloak billowing, face cold, eyes sharp. Something about him was different… terrifying.

“You’re late,” Lena scolded, though her voice faltered.

Nero smirked faintly. “Had training to finish.”

Kain grinned. “Took you long enough.”

Arden simply nodded. “Let’s win.”

Nero turned his gaze toward the towering gates of the Trial Grounds.

“I’m ready… Let’s show them what real demons look like.”

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