Chapter 526 — Reactions

[Central Region - Capitol City]

The massive public screen in Victory Square showed Damian’s armored form walking away.

Thousands of people stood packed together, staring upward at the broadcast.

When the reporter confirmed the kill, silence held for three heartbeats.

Then someone screamed.

"HE DID IT!"

The crowd exploded.

"DAMIAN VALCOR!"

"THE YOUNG MAN KILLED THE GIANT CHIEF!"

"WE AREN’T DEFENSELESS!"

People grabbed strangers, hugging them, cheering together as relief crashed through in waves.

An old man collapsed to his knees, his hands pressed together.

"Thank you... Thank you..."

His voice came out broken.

"My grandson was at Lufen... One of the survivors... Thank you, boy... Thank you..."

Near the edge of the crowd, a mother held her young daughter on her shoulders.

The girl’s eyes were locked on the screen, watching Damian’s damaged armor disappear into snow.

"Mama, who is he?"

The mother’s voice came out thick with emotion.

"A hero, sweetheart... That’s what a real hero looks like..."

****

[Eastern Region - Port City of Havenreach]

The dockworkers had stopped mid-shift, gathered around a tablet propped on a shipping crate.

When the confirmation came through, rough men with weathered faces started cheering, their voices echoing across the harbor.

"SEVENTEEN YEARS OLD!"

"KILLED A GIANT GENIUS ALONE!"

"THAT’S OUR NEW GENERATION!"

One of them, a scarred veteran with a prosthetic arm, stood apart from the celebration.

His eyes tracked Damian’s form on the screen, seeing details others missed.

’Those injuries should have killed him... How is he still alive?’

****

[Southern Region - Mining Town of Ironforge]

The bar had gone silent when the broadcast started.

Now glasses shattered against walls, miners roaring their approval.

"DRINKS ON ME!"

The owner’s voice boomed across the chaos.

"TO DAMIAN VALCOR! TO THE MADMAN WHO JUST SAVED OUR PEOPLE AND KILLED THE GIANT RUNT!"

The crowd surged, alcohol flowing, voices rising in celebration that shook the building’s foundations.

In a corner booth, three academy students sat quietly, watching their classmates celebrate.

One of them spoke, his voice barely audible over the noise.

"He’s our age... Same year at the academy..."

Another nodded slowly.

"And he just did something that will be written in history books..."

The third said nothing, just stared at the screen showing Damian’s retreating form.

’How do we even stand in the same room as someone like that anymore?’

The thought sat heavy and unanswerable.

****

[Western Region - Willow Town]

Farmers gathered in the town square, their work forgotten.

Children ran through the crowd, laughing and playing, acting out the battle with sticks as swords.

"I’M DAMIAN VALCOR!"

One boy’s voice rose above the others.

"AND I’M GOING TO KILL ALL THE GIANTS!"

He swung his stick at another child pretending to be a giant.

Their parents watched, smiling despite the tension visible on their faces.

"It’s the first good news we’ve had since they started announcing the names of the dead..."

A mother whispered to her husband.

"Maybe... Maybe with him there... Our son will survive the war as well..."

****

[Northern Region - Far North]

The cold here was brutal, snow piling higher than in other regions.

But people stood outside anyway, gathered around public screens, refusing to go inside despite the temperature.

When Damian’s words echoed across the broadcast, when he said "Why not?" with that casual certainty...

An old woman started crying.

Her grandson put his arm around her shoulders.

"Grandma, what’s wrong? We won, this is good news–"

"That boy..."

Her voice came out thick with emotion.

"Sounds just like them... Just like the old northern warriors, before the purge happened..."

She looked at the screen, at Damian’s damaged armor.

"That attitude, that absolute conviction, that willingness to face impossible odds alone..."

Her hands trembled.

"He feels like... a Bloodworth..."

****

[Stormhold Academy - Great Hall]

Every student and professor had gathered, the massive space packed beyond capacity.

Screens floated throughout the hall, showing the broadcast from multiple angles.

When the Sage’s confirmation came through, when it became undeniable that Damian had actually killed Krazgor Ironjaw...

The Mafia students erupted.

"THAT’S OUR BOSS!"

Their voices overlapped, pride bleeding through every word.

"HE FUCKING DID IT!"

"SHOWED THOSE GIANT BASTARDS WHAT HUMANITY CAN DO!"

"VALCOR! VALCOR! VALCOR!"

The chant spread, dozens of voices becoming hundreds.

Noble students stood in shocked silence, their faces showing emotions too complex to name.

Then one of them started clapping, another joined, then another...

Within moments, the entire hall thundered with applause.

Near the front, Nathan Brock’s massive fist came down on the table in front of him.

CRACK

Wood splintered, the entire surface collapsing under the force.

"THAT MADMAN!"

His voice boomed across the hall, genuine joy mixing with disbelief.

"HE REALLY FUCKING DID IT!"

His bald head shook, laughter erupting from his chest.

"WALKED INTO A GIANT ARMY ALONE AND KILLED THEIR CHIEF! THAT’S A FUCKING MAN!"

Professor Vivian Verratoux stood nearby, her pink hair catching the light.

’Telekinesis strong enough to move thousands... Now combat ability that can kill a Young Chief...’

Her mind raced through implications, through possibilities, through questions that had no easy answers.

’What kind of mental capacity does he possess? What kind of talent? And how much stronger will he become?’

Her eyes tracked Damian’s armored form.

’Sicar, don’t you dare make any foolish mistake while recruiting him... Don’t be like those extremists.’

Professor Richard Evergreen adjusted his glasses with trembling fingers.

’That armor skill saved his life... But the injuries underneath must be catastrophic for him to not even be able to repair it with Aura...’

His medical mind was already working, analyzing what he’d seen.

’And yet... he walked away so calmly and his voice never wavered even once...’

Professor Emmanuel Langsten stood furthest back, his blue hair disheveled despite his attempts to smooth it.

’A Young Chief... He killed a fucking Young Chief...’

The implications made his stomach turn.

’Our Imperial heirs train their entire lives and almost all of them would die facing one... But he’s seventeen and he just...’

He couldn’t finish the thought.

At a distance from the celebrating masses, three figures stood together.

Leonard Ashford’s grey eyes remained fixed on the screen, his expression caught between shock and something darker.

"How?" The word came out barely audible. "He was B rank just weeks ago during the Tranquil City Incident..."

Michael Thorne stood beside him, his golden hair catching the light.

"And now he’s A+ rank." His voice carried strain. "Not just any A+ rank, but one strong enough to kill Krazgor Ironjaw alone..."

Iris Langsten’s face showed bruises that the healing hadn’t completely erased yet, remnants of her fight with Luna where she’d nearly died.

’I should ask dad to recruit him in the family!’

Her eyes tracked Damian’s form with intensity that bordered on obsession, but she didn’t say anything.

Leonard’s jaw clenched.

"It doesn’t make sense. Growth like that isn’t natural, isn’t possible even with SSS rank talent..."

Michael said nothing, but his hands had started shaking.

****

In a corner of the Hall, Sebastian Valcor and Seraphina Vale watched the broadcast together.

Seraphina’s hand had found Sebastian’s, her fingers interlaced with his.

She squeezed gently, her violet eyes never leaving the screen.

"I told you." Her voice came out soft but absolute. "I know my student well enough."

Her lips curved slightly.

"If he said he alone is enough, then he is... Although, I still can’t believe it myself."

Sebastian’s free hand came up to his face, fingers pressing against his eyes.

"I came here to look after him and Luna..." His voice cracked. "I thought... I thought I could protect them, watch over them while their parents were..."

He couldn’t finish as tears escaped despite his attempts to hold them back.

"But after I told him about the Hell Portal, he–"

Then understanding crashed through him, pieces clicking together with terrible clarity.

"Alaric... Lyandra..."

The names emerged as barely a whisper.

"Your son just went to war with an entire race for you."

The words hung in the air between them.

Seraphina said nothing, but her hand squeezed his again, acknowledgment and comfort wrapped together.

****

At the very back of the hall, standing in shadows where most eyes wouldn’t find them, a small figure watched the broadcast with dark eyes: Alessio Crimson.

Around him, other first-years celebrated or stared in shock.

But Alessio remained perfectly still, his expression unreadable.

His mind replayed Damian’s words on endless repeat: ’Why not?’

The same two words that had changed his life completely, spoken in a different context but carrying the same weight.

The same absolute conviction that caring about another person needed no justification.

Alessio’s expression shifted, something settling in his features that looked too old for his fifteen-year-old face.

’That’s who you are, Master... You don’t need elaborate reasons to do what you believe is right.’

His thoughts became quieter and darker.

’And that’s who I’ll become too... Someone who acts without hesitation when it matters.’

Around him, the celebration continued.

But Alessio stood alone in the shadows, watching and learning and becoming something that would make his Master proud.