9 Through Hellfire (Bonus Chapter)

(I was going to skip today because I'm abroad but Dayden_Smith gifted three power stones. Thanks for the support :) bonus 3/3.)

Agony. A level of torture that no one in this room could possibly stand. Not the geniuses from around the world, not the mysterious man in the corner, not even Erwin Croft himself.

But who was Regulus? He was no ordinary man. Able to retain sanity when burning through his soul, his willpower was an ocean compared to the mere drops the others possessed.

Standing resolute on the seventh step, blood began trickling down his nose as Regulus' brain haemorrhaged, his sanity slipping. He burst into maniacal laughter, spreading his arms out wide.

"HAHAHA- AHHAHA IS THAT ALL YOU'VE GOT. YOU THINK YOUR MERE CARD ENERGY COULD CONTAIN ME."

A sense of fear was creeping into the applicants around him at the anomaly in front of them. With just his body, Regulus Cosmos stood in a place even 'Detailed Aces' struggled to stand.

Even the most prideful, like Prince Rowan, who had already reached step ten, couldn't prevent a flicker of fear from appearing in the corner of his eye.

Yet, whilst most watched the anomaly Regulus Cosmos in fear, a few began to see him as an idol.

Azrael Brightwing was sharing a stair with Regulus on step seven when he saw Regulus' performance. As a member of the fallen angel race, Azrael couldn't help but develop an inferiority complex to those around him.

Even Azrael's surname 'Brightwing' was a constant reminder of what the angels had lost, preventing him from fully bringing out his detailed ace card potential.

Feeling a barrier when he reached step seven, Azrael thought it was only natural to bow his head and surrender to the fate of his clan.

That is when Azrael saw him. A maniacal man with his clothes ripped and blood masking his face. Regulus stood on the same level as him without even utilising card energy.

Azrael couldn't help but feel like his head was dunked into cold water; here he was complaining about circumstances when a man with no card magic was smiling as if prepared to face the world.

At that moment, Azrael steeled his resolve and continued his ascent with a mindset to devour the world.

Step by step, Regulus climbed all the while the aura of a King could almost be seen wrapping around him.

"I REGULUS COSMOS DO NOT BEND OR BREAK NO MATTER WHO I AM FACING."

Regulus kept speaking, knowing it was the only thing keeping his consciousness from slipping. As he reached the ninth step, Regulus felt his muscles snap strand by strand.

As if crawling through hellfire itself, Regulus forced on, almost biting through his tongue in the process. His muscles snapped, and he felt his leg break, collapsing on itself.

Regulus' frame tilted to the side just one motion away from the tenth step.

As if watching the most enthralling play, the spectators, from students to teachers, caught their breaths as they awaited the fate of their protagonist.

It then began to move, a beaten crimson mass relying on just one leg to force itself onto the tenth floor.

"AAAHHHHH"

A beast-like roar could be heard as Regulus summited the tenth step, his body convulsing in impossible shapes.

While most onlookers marvelled at the impossibility of what they had just seen, feeling as if they had just witnessed the descent of a war god, a few people noticed something more.

Erwin Croft could hardly believe what he was seeing; if someone saw him right now, they would think people were lying about his stone-faced reputation.

Regulus was still trying to continue; despite achieving a miracle, Regulus' gaze did not stray from the top of the staircase—his goal and impossible ambition that threatened to consume all.

However, lightning doesn't strike twice, and as Regulus approached the eleventh step, his body could no longer keep up with his mind's ambition.

Covered with a virtual curtain of crimson, Regulus Cosmos collapsed to the floor, his body in an unimaginable state, yet his pride still intact.

The old man in the corner of the room could only shake his head as he muttered to himself.

"Truly an anomaly. That man can shake the world if his wings aren't clipped first."

Dispersing into the air all that was left behind was a dark and lonely corner that didn't show the slightest traces that a human had inhabited it prior.

The first trial of the Karta Academy's entrance examination. A moment that would allow the names of the geniuses of that generation to shake the world.

Yet despite their higher results in the examination, their achievements were drowned out by the deafening name that resounded throughout the academy. The Anomaly, Regulus Cosmos.

***

Awakening to an unfamiliar ceiling and the smell of medicine burning at his nostrils it didn't take long for Regulus to figure out where he was.

Hearing the awakening of her patient a beautiful nurse with long purple hair and a funny look on her face drew back the curtain to reveal the figure of Regulus.

Her name was Saintess Evergreen, and she was often considered the greatest healer in the Kingdom for her use of holy magic and nature magic; in fact, she was often considered the closest thing left to the ancient green elves.

Yet even with all her experience she had never seen a case quite like Regulus.

Whilst the teachers and headmaster of the academy were discussing what to do about the accepted reality that Regulus would miss the remaining tests, just a day later he had awoken from his comatose state.

Even though the Saintess could heal, the physical and mental injuries often left people unconscious for a week, not even considering the severity of the injuries Regulus had faced.

The proud Saintess Evergreen could only shake her head at sigh as she recalled the name spreading around the grounds like wildfire.

"I guess you truly live up to your name as an anomaly."

-Authors Note-

Damn, it was rough to write these 3 chapters whilst abroad, but I did my best.

Thank you, Eternal_D, for the power stones. I will get to that tomorrow.