Chapter 385: The Fox Who Stole Creation Itself

In the back, a few students exchanged uneasy glances.

"Wait...that doesn’t make sense." One whispered. "Astrid’s blessing isn’t illusion-type."

"Yeah." Another said, frowning. "It’s public knowledge. Her blessing is ’Heaven’s Pact: The Fox Who Stole Creation Itself’ It gives her control over elemental forces."

"Right." A third added. "Fire, water, wind, lightning...she controls seven primary elements. That’s why she has seven tails."

They spoke in hushed tones, recalling the details.

Those who had seen her fight before knew Astrid wasn’t an illusionist.

She was a force of nature.

A walking catastrophe.

Each of her tails represented a fundamental element she commanded: flame, water, wind, earth, lightning, and two more elements.

It was said that when she fought seriously, those tails would shift colors—each one transforming into the element it embodied.

They had seen her summon tornadoes during training exercises.

They had seen her create earthquakes that shattered entire floors.

They had seen her generate tidal waves during simulations.

Some had watched a demonstration where she formed a plasma storm in the palm of her hand.

Her blessing was famous—elemental sovereignty in its purest form.

And the most terrifying rumor of all, one whispered across every institution and military base was that when she reached her full potential, she could control not just the elements but creation itself.

Because the seven elements she wielded were the foundation of life itself.

That was the true meaning of her title: The Fox Who Stole Creation Itself.

A being who could one day remake the world.

And that was why many believed Astrid to be the most dangerous and most promising of all the Battle Angel’s daughters.

A few students whispered quietly,

"But...her blessing has nothing to do with illusions..."

"It’s Heaven’s Pact. Elemental control."

"She doesn’t have shapeshifting or illusion techniques."

"That hole looked too real..."

"She stabbed straight through him..."

But the moment they began talking, the louder students—those who were desperate to believe a safe explanation drowned them out.

"What are you saying? It has to be an illusion!"

"Obviously! What else could explain him being alive?"

"There’s no way it was real. Stop being stupid."

"She wouldn’t kill someone in public—that makes no sense."

And slowly, reluctantly, the doubters fell silent.

Because the logical explanation, the comforting lie was so much easier to accept than the terrifying truth.

But of course, Mika, on the other hand, knew the truth.

And the truth was most definitely the fact that Astrid had been trying to kill Vander and she had actually succeeded.

Only for Mika to save his life at the last possible second.

When Vander had shoved him away during the match, Mika had thought that he would simply get up afterward, looking hurt but not too badly injured.

He’d planned to say that he always kept a protective charm around him or something like that—something believable that would explain why he wasn’t seriously wounded.

But before he could even do anything, before he could even begin to execute that plan, just as Nuri had helped him to his feet, he’d seen it.

Vander was actually lying on the floor.

With a gaping hole in his body.

Astrid had acted too fast, faster than Mika could even react.

She’d moved purely on impulse and had actually killed Vander on the spot, right there in front of everyone.

And honestly? Mika wasn’t even that surprised.

He already knew that Astrid was uncontrollable when it came to things like this.

Among all the daughters of the Battle Angels, she was the one who listened to him the least.

She did what she wanted, when she wanted, without caring about anyone or anything in the world.

She was stubborn beyond belief.

Even though Charlotte was mischievous and playful, Mika could control her.

He could guide her, redirect her energy, keep her in check.

Even though Anya was scheming and calculating, she was completely honest with him.

She trusted him implicitly, and once again, she was under his control when it mattered.

But Astrid?

Astrid was fifty-fifty.

Sometimes she would listen to his words and restrain herself, keeping her violent impulses in check.

But other times, she simply couldn’t hold back.

When her emotions ran too high, when someone crossed a line she couldn’t forgive, she would snap.

And when that happened, nothing could stop her.

This was exactly why Mika hadn’t wanted to meet Astrid in a confrontation like this.

He’d known, deep down, that something bad could happen.

That she might lose control.

That she might do something irreversible.

And this time...she had gone too far.

If Vander had truly died here, in front of hundreds of witnesses, it wouldn’t just cause chaos—it would shake the entire academy.

Even with all of Nadia’s connections, even with all the political influence behind the scenes, cleaning this up would’ve been a nightmare.

So, he had done the only thing he could.

He’d revived Vander on the spot, repaired every trace of damage, and turned the entire mess into a ’misunderstood illusion.’

The crowd believed it. Thank the heavens for that.

But Astrid...

Astrid didn’t look pleased.

In fact, she looked offended.

Almost as if she was personally insulted that Mika had revived the boy she had just killed.

As if she’d wanted Vander to stay dead.

She was clearly pissed off that Mika had saved him.

Her eyes were cold, her expression dark, and her seven tails swayed behind her in slow arcs—a sure sign that she was still furious.

And then, to Mika’s growing horror, she took a step forward.

Directly toward Vander.

Vander, who had just fully processed what had happened to him, stumbled backward, his face going pale.

His eyes were wide with absolute terror.

He looked like a man who’d just stared death in the face...and realized it was still hunting him.

But luckily for him, Mika quickly stepped into Astrid’s path, spreading his arms to block her.

"Calm down, Astrid. Please."

Her eyes snapped toward him, cold and sharp, but Mika didn’t back away.

"Let’s not do anything hasty." He said firmly. "I just spent all my effort reviving him and spinning this whole illusion story to calm the crowd."

"I can’t repeat that twice in one day, so if you kill him again, there’s no way I can cover it up."

Astrid said nothing, her tails flicking behind her.

"I know." Mika continued softly. "I know you did this for me. You’re angry that he shoved me. I get it. But look—I’m fine. I’m standing right here. There’s no reason to make this any worse."

For a moment, Astrid just stared at him.

And then she spoke, her voice flat and cold.

"What are you talking about?"

Mika blinked, caught off guard.

"Why are you even talking to me so fondly?" Astrid continued, her tone icy. "It’s not like you’re my brother or anything."

Mika’s stomach dropped.

"You’re simply a stranger." Astrid said, her words sharp and deliberate. "Just like you said yourself. So why are you acting as if I did this for you or something? It’s not true."

Mika sighed quietly. "Astrid..."

"The only reason I struck him..." She went on icily. "...was because he broke the rules. Because I hate people who defy them. It has nothing to do with you."

She turned slightly, her tails flaring behind her.

"It’s my duty to punish those who violate discipline. People like him tarnish the image of humans, and I won’t allow that to happen under my watch."

She took another step toward Vander, who stumbled back again, eyes wide in horror.

Hearing this, Mika groaned internally.

This was exactly the stubbornness he’d been talking about earlier.

Right now, Astrid was still mad, still deeply, personally offended about the fact that Mika had refused to call her big sister earlier.

And even in a situation like this, even though it was painfully, obviously clear that she’d killed Vander purely for Mika’s sake, she was acting as if she hadn’t done it for him at all.

She was pretending she’d done it for some noble, rule-enforcing reason.

Completely ignoring him.

Refusing to acknowledge his gratitude or his concern.

All because he hadn’t called her what she wanted to be called.

That was how stubborn she was.

But nonetheless, Mika wasn’t about to give up.

He stepped forward again, placing himself directly in front of her, blocking her path completely. He looked up at her with wide, pleading eyes—the kind of expression he knew she found hard to resist.

"Please, Astrid." Mika said firmly, his tone softer now. "I’m asking you to stop. Please don’t make this worse than it already is."

"Cleaning this mess up has already been difficult enough, and if anything else happens, it’ll get out of hand fast."

"So just...stop. Please."

Astrid wanted to refute.

But then, slowly, her gaze softened.

She looked at his pleading face—those wide, earnest eyes, that vulnerable expression and she felt something inside her waver.

Damn it.

When he looked at her like that, she really found it hard to resist.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she bit her lip and let out a long, frustrated breath.

"Fine. I’ll do what you ask, Mika. I won’t hurt him again in front of everyone again."

He was about to let out a sigh of relief.

But then Astrid continued, her tone shifting slightly.

"But you have to call me big sister."

Mika froze.

"What?"

"You heard me."

Astrid said, crossing her arms and there was a faint, almost triumphant glint in her eyes.

"As long as you call me big sister, I’ll comply with your wishes and do whatever you want. I’ll leave him alone. I won’t cause any more trouble. I’ll walk away right now."

"If not..."

Her seven tails lifted ever so slightly behind her—glowing faintly, dangerous and alive.

"I’ll kill him."

Mika immediately shook his head, his expression hardening.

"No." He said firmly. "Not at all. There’s no way in hell I’m doing that."

Astrid raised an eyebrow.

"You can’t just take advantage of me in a situation like this." Mika continued, his voice rising slightly. "That’s not fair! You can’t hold someone’s life hostage just to get me to call you what you want!"

Astrid shrugged, completely unbothered.

"Okay, fine then." She said casually, turning back toward Vander. "Then I’m going to go kill him."

Vander fell backward in terror, scrambling to his feet.

"No! No, please—!"

Once again, Mika stepped forward, planting himself squarely between Astrid and her trembling target.

But this time, he knew words alone wouldn’t calm her. Logic and reasoning never worked on Astrid—not when her pride or emotions were involved.

So he tried something different.