The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL] - Chapter 723

Chapter 723: The Shifting Core

They didn’t, more like couldn’t, stop there.

After the first disappearance, they tried again.

This time, they even had to leave the monster’s gastrovascular cavity—and that was not exactly the most enjoyable process.

The team scanned the enormous creature again, patiently waiting for the readings to stabilize. The process took several minutes each time because, frankly, the monster was so massive that the scanners had to perform multiple sweeps just to cover one section.

Finally, the bright readings appeared again.

“There it is!” Luca said, pointing at the glowing marks on the display. “That’s definitely the core cluster! Hmm… but how come it’s over there all of a sudden?”

Everyone looked at the data Luca transmitted, exchanging uneasy glances.

“Alright, moving in,” Kyle confirmed, his medium-class mecha gliding through the water with practiced control. The group followed, cautious but hopeful.

They reached the marked area, ready for the big harvest.

And then—

“…Wait.”

Luca blinked.

The readings were gone again.

“Hey! No way?!” The mop exclaimed indignantly as Kyle’s display confirmed the sudden drop in energy levels.

See, the detectors would usually be able to tell if an area had a high energy concentration, and that was typically useful when you knew where to look.

But because the cluster kept vanishing, the team had to keep scanning the entire creature from top to bottom every single time.

Only to get there and have their mark disappear again!

By their third attempt, everyone was convinced of one thing: the core cluster somehow managed to move the moment it sensed danger.

But how? And more importantly, what now?

It was a miserable situation, especially for Luca, who looked as though someone had personally stolen his wealth and vigor.

Not only would this take forever, but the longer they dragged it out, the more spiritual energy the others would burn.

“Aren’t cores supposed to stay in one spot? If it doesn’t, then what about the pathways? Surely even mutated beings have pathways, right?” asked the puzzled adjutant, looking at the flickering data feed.

That was true.

Luca’s mind raced. Humans and most beasts had predictable core locations—somewhere central, usually near vital organs. From there, spiritual energy traveled through defined channels, much like a circulatory system.

He paused, staring thoughtfully at the massive creature being distracted by one baby system, which was bravely waving around a rock soaked in concentrated spiritual energy.

For humans, major arteries and nerves followed consistent routes. But for this thing…

His thoughts stopped when Jax’s voice suddenly broke through. “But isn’t it because this thing has no brain or heart?”

“Huh?” Ollie wanted to say that even if it were true, that’s a little rude!

But before anyone could say anything else, a loud clattering sound came from Luca’s comms.

“Brother, what’s wrong?” Ollie asked.

“No, nothing! I—uh—I just think Jax has a point!” Luca said quickly. “Unlike us humans, who have clear concentrations toward specific organs, this creature probably doesn’t! For something like a sea anemone… ideally, if you cut it in half from the top, you’d just get a mirror image!”

Silence filled the channel.

Jax finally muttered in confusion, “Huh? I got it right???”

Well, who knows?

But what was certain was that Luca felt inspired by all of this—so inspired, in fact, that he thought of calling over his father, who he hoped wasn’t too busy.

And that was exactly how they ended up with a sword that cost at least two million CP being used as a glorified detector.

Although Luca tried to justify it, in his good brother’s mind, it really looked more like an expensive alternative divining rod.

“Brother, how come the sword is able to do that?” Ollie finally asked, while watching the Duke spin in slow circles with the seriousness of a man trying to decode fate itself.

“Ah, it’s really because of the Titanhide Steel,” Luca replied, tapping thoughtfully on his console. “I remembered how the Dreadcolossus Core chose this material from the purified pile. It had a strange resonance with colossal crystal cores, so I figured, since we’re specifically looking for one and not just any energy signal, won’t it be better if we do it like this?”

He sounded so calm and logical, so perfectly reasonable—if not for the fact that his father, Duke Leander Kyros, was currently rotating like a lost compass underwater.

Every few seconds, the Duke’s mecha would stop, point its massive sword in a different direction, then swivel again.

After several tries, the Duke realized that there were indeed differences in how the sword reacted depending on how close he was. The vibrations would grow stronger, the hum louder, and finally, when he was right on top of the likeliest spot, the sword would start pulling in his grip as if it wanted to leap out of his hands.

Duke Leander blinked, mildly horrified.

Was the sword… trying to escape?

He couldn’t help but recall the care guidelines his son had written about the weapon: daily greetings, occasional compliments, proper polishing intervals, and one direct acknowledgment of excellence.

Was this sword actually sentient?!

Because really, how else could this be explained?

But the strangest part of all was that it worked.

Every time the Duke locked onto a stronger reaction and relayed the coordinates, the cadets would strike at the designated area—and each time, they would attack confidently.

By the fourth successful attempt, the Duke’s confusion had given way to pride.

In fact, he couldn’t stop smiling.

His son truly was a genius. The method was strange, maybe even ridiculous, but it worked like magic.

Although…

Even as he turned the mecha one more time, feeling the sword vibrate faintly in his hands, he still wasn’t entirely sure about one thing.

What exactly was the final goal here?

Because so far, all he knew was that they were attacking something, but it didn’t seem any closer to dying.

“Son, are we trying to capture it?” the Duke asked, this time frowning as he realized something. “What am I even pointing at?”

“Ah, Papa, that’s because we’re not trying to get it like this,” Luca said cheerfully, “instead, the goal is—”

But he didn’t get to finish.

Because suddenly, the Duke’s sword jerked downward with such force that it startled even him. The entire mecha tilted forward as he fought to steady his grip.

“Wha—what?!” he sputtered, eyes widening. “It’s pulling down now?!”

Before he could make sense of it, Luca’s voice burst through the comms, high with excitement.

“Jax! It’s supposed to be there!”

“Wait, really?!” Jax yelped, his redheaded figure darting closer on the monitor. “Oh wow! It’s really here! Captain, I’ve marked the coordinates—it’s visible!”

The whole channel lit up with sudden movement.

And that was when Duke Leander caught sight of D-64.

At Ollie’s command of, “Go!” the small, energetic baby mecha moved faster than anyone expected.

It hurled the glowing rock it had been proudly waving around since earlier straight toward the monstrous beast’s gaping mouth.

The tentacles reacted instantly.

They surged forward with greedy eagerness, twisting and writhing as they reached for the glittering bait that had probably been driving the creature mad for hours.

But before the rock was swallowed, something else happened.

The Duke blinked, leaning closer to his screen.

He could have sworn he just saw the familiar silhouette of Xavier’s guardian mecha darting straight into the creature’s maw.

“Now what?”

And then the maw shut just as fast, but moments later, the same monster seemed to flinch towards one side!

“?!”

But at the same moment, the Duke wasn’t even sure if the finishing blow was meant for the monster or for him.

Because the last thing he heard before his vision went hazy was his son’s bright, worried voice echoing through the comms:

“Husband! Did you hit it?!”

The Duke barely managed a dazed, “…What?” before the feed cut out completely.

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