[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-solflare-the-painter-s-secret":3,"chapter-solflare-the-painter-s-secret-solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-66":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Solflare: The Painter's Secret",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1322894,1757,"Chapter 66: STORM, L. VS. GRACE","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-66",66,"\u003Cp>\"Is that the only thing you’re using for your match?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon looked down at himself, then back at Zoe. \"Yeah. Why? Is it bad for the match?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A faint, unreadable smile touched her lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, it’s not. You can use that.\" She shook her head, grabbed her own datapad from the table, and walked to the door without waiting for him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon hesitated, then left without going for his own datapad and followed her out of the room. His footsteps remained the only thing echoing in the silent hallway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lobby was a different world. Students milled about, their morning chatter a low roar. As Leon and Zoe descended the last stair, dozens of eyes turned toward them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is he finally leaving Alchemania?\" a voice snickered, followed by a short burst of laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon ignored it, but a tiny laugh tore at his lips. He closed his eyes and cracked them open within a second. Then, the wall near the entrance drew his attention like a magnet pulling steel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The crater his fist had made was still there, the spiderweb of cracks radiating outward. He tore his gaze away and followed Zoe out of the main doors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The scent of wet grass and distant decay from the fruitful trees and the flowing air filled him whole. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he opened them, Zoe was already ten paces ahead. He hurried to catch up, waving for her to pause and stop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he halted beside her, she wordlessly pulled the scuffled datapad from her pocket and handed it to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why did you leave it there?\" she asked in a tone that implied he was careless, while her eyes looked sideways, as if the words were meant for someone at her left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s mind raced as he took the device and placed it in the pocket of his trousers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Did she take it while I was in the shower? I didn’t see her near the bed after I came out. And she didn’t go near it before we left either. So how?’ thoughts boomed in his mind as he became unnerved more than if she’d snatched it openly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As they approached the granite trial hall, the atmosphere changed. Students clad in combat gear streamed toward the building, their faces set with grim anticipation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why not the old trial ground?\" Leon turned toward Zoe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It collapsed months ago.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon nodded silently and shifted his gaze forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fingers pointed at them as Leon and Zoe neared the vast red entrance. Although whispers cut through, Leon’s senses were locked on the door like a time bomb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chorus of cheers, jeers, and collective gasps rolled out to meet them like a wave when Zoe yanked the door open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The roar of the crowd hit Leon like a physical force as he stepped into the trial hall. A wave of sound struck his chest and vibrated in his teeth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He followed Zoe through a river of bodies, thick air that had the scent of sweat, and the coppery tang of blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Scanning around, he found an empty seat wedged between two broad-shouldered boys who didn’t even acknowledge him. Their attention remained fixed on the square platform below.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There is a seat here,\" Leon said, but brushed it off when he saw Zoe walking toward another seat that was in the middle of the ladies with thick bodies and breasts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn’t focus on the fights. Unfamiliar names got called while bodies clashed in flashes of light and the spray of blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Focusing on the platform, he saw a slim lady with red hair command the earth to swallow her opponent, a girl who had multiplied into dozens of fading echoes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The multiplier fell and got carried away by the silent, white-robed figures he’d seen in the hallway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two hours flashed by quickly. Then, a sudden silence fell on every seat, causing every intake of breath to stop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"NEXT MATCH: STORM, L. VS. GRACE.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whispers cut through the silence like a hissing tide. Heads swiveled, necks craned. Leon felt the heat of a thousand stares.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he stood up and tilted his gaze across the sections nearest him, the whispers died in throats, smothered by the direction of his look.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Walking to the platform was like moving through a tunnel. The granite steps were cool under his boots.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he stepped onto the rune-etched stone, the barrier shimmered into place behind him and sealed him in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No cheers rose, but he could see faces in the front rows, flushed with a kind of outraged disbelief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a few moments, roaring applause greeted his opponent as she entered the arena.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She looks taller than I expected,\" he whispered as he stared at the map of silvery scars crisscrossing her arms and neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Why is my opponent a lady?’ Leon thought as confusion overrode his focus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hey, handsome,\" Grace said in a voice that carried through the fading applause with ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She brought out her pinky finger to her lips and licked it slowly, in a sarcastic, predatory gesture. \"Do you remember me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon squinted, his mind scrambling. ’The face... the exaggerated gesture...’ he thought as he began remembering her bit by bit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Yeah, that’s her.’ His face lightened when he realized she was the first lady who had cut in front of him with a smile and a promise seven months ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s expression didn’t change, but something tightened behind his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lady dropped the act instantly as the countdown shimmered at the sides of the barrier. Her posture snapped into a combat stance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She thrust upward violently and hung in the air for a while. From her back, two massive, feathered wings erupted with a sound like tearing canvas.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It beat once and sent a concussive blast of air across the platform that kicked up dust and made Leon brace himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Whoa!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In an instant, a single, razor-sharp feather detached and shot toward him like a dagger. Leon sidestepped, but the tip grazed his chin and drew a thin, stinging line of blood from him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dust swirled into a miniature tornado as she dove in a blur of movement.\u003C\u002Fp>",1029,"2026-06-05T19:15:29.583Z",1,"novelbin.me","6b732df71f47bf349062fd78a14e9a9639de68ec9e9289874455af47317aef62","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-67","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-65",272,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsolflare-the-painter-s-secret-cover.jpg"]