[{"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-71":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},1322899,1757,"Chapter 71: Fight Them All","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-71",71,"\u003Cp>The afternoon sun’s rays stabbed Leon’s eyes when he exited from the trial hall’s main door. He raised his right hand and shielded himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The clean air washed over him, carrying the scent of damp grass and the distant, sweet-rotten perfume from the fruitful trees.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He closed his eyes and inhaled the air, but stopped and shifted his gaze upward—a sharp cry cut through the hum of the wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Against the vast, pale blue sky, a flock of white birds wheeled in a circle directly overhead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a moment, they seemed to orbit the space above him, their wings catching the sun like flashes of silver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, with one movement, they banked and arrowed upward, vanishing into a high, wispy cloud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A strange hollow feeling thrummed in Leon’s chest, like being witnessed by something otherworldly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His walk to the dormitories was like being driven by the wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stopping by the center of the quad, whispers that had once been barbed with insults now held a questioning tone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He kept his gaze forward, his expression extremely neutral. As he placed his steps one after another, he felt the weight of their attention like a physical pressure against his skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stretching his hand forward, just an inch from the cream-colored building’s main door, he froze. A long shadow fell across him, blotting the sun.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A surge of instinctual anxiety tightened in his shoulders, causing him to turn swiftly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tension died slightly when he saw Mr. Lee standing behind him, his expression unreadable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Congratulations on winning your first fight,\" Mr. Lee said in a flat voice that seemed to be devoid of any warmth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’My first fight? What about the ones with Grace? And with Zoe?’ Leon’s mind screamed with questions. Before he could say them, Mr. Lee continued.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The first two engagements you were involved in were just tests.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’To test me?’ Icy liquid snaked down Leon’s spine. ’They made me fight Zoe... for data?’ A hot spike of anger lanced through his maintained composure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His jaw tightened, but he forced himself to breathe slowly, to keep the fury from reaching his eyes, and from making him say things he wasn’t ready to.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You can go and rest for now,\" Mr. Lee said, as if dismissing a piece of equipment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tomorrow will be the last match for this phase. It will be conducted in groups.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Last fight? Groups?’ Leon swallowed hard as the new information mixed with the confusion already taking root in him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gave a short nod, then smiled faintly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mr. Lee held his gaze for a second, then turned and walked away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon watched him go until he dissolved into the lengthening shadows of the courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wow,\" he said with a tense smile, then turned and pushed the door open and stepped into the lobby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside, the usual clusters of students lounging on benches or chattering near the stairwell fell silent as he moved two steps forward from the door he’d shut behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had intense, analytical expressions as they stared at him. They watched him cross the worn floor as if he were a puzzle they were trying to solve.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon ignored them and maintained the pace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he reached the front of the elevator, a memory of the ruined second-floor door slammed into the back of his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Damn, I’d forgotten it wasn’t working.\" A flicker of frustration crossed his face as he muttered under his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned, preparing to climb up the stairs everyone had been using.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that instant, a low mechanical hum vibrated through the wall, causing him to pause, his right leg hovering slightly above the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The silver elevator doors, which had been sealed, suddenly shimmered with internal light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a soft ping, they slid open, revealing the empty, brightly lit car within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>’Has it been fixed already?’ A faint, weary smile touched Leon’s lips as he stared at it. ’Nice.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The small convenience felt like a minor victory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped inside, the doors sighing shut behind him. He stared at the buttons for a while, then pressed the button for the second floor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The metal ground beneath his boots shook a little as the car began its ascent. He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, letting the hum of the machinery fill his ears.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, without warning, the light inside the elevator flickered violently and died.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gentle movement ceased with a jarring lurch, suspending him in utter blackness and silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s eyes snapped open. \"What’s going on?\" His hands fumbled in his pocket, pulling out the datapad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its screen flared to life, casting a sickly blue glow that illuminated his own hands and the closed walls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He lifted the device, using its light to scan the small space. The light reflected off the polished doors, turning them into dark mirrors.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the glassy surface, his own reflection stared back, pale, then shifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Other faces began to bleed into his reflection, superimposing themselves over his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old woman from Dusthollow, her eyes like flint. The lizard-lady from the simulation, acidic tears tracing her scales.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cold dread seized Leon when he saw their mouths move in unison.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He whipped his head to the left, to the right, but got the same intense feeling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pressed his back against the rear wall of the car, the datapad’s light shaking heavily in his grip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the reflection, the images solidified. Then, a scaled, long-fingered arm seemed to push out from the mirror, reaching into the space of the elevator toward him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A choked sound escaped from Leon’s throat as he recoiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chorus of voices boomed with a force that vibrated in his teeth. It sounded like the old woman’s gravel and the lizard-lady’s plea, but twisted into a single deafening command:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"FIGHT THEM! FIGHT THEM ALL TO GET THE SECRET BEHIND THE CRASH!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the final word echoed, the faces in the reflection shattered like glass and dissolved into fragments of light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Simultaneously, the elevator’s lights flickered back on with a harsh, fluorescent buzz.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The machinery engaged with a soft jerk as the car resumed its smooth ascent as if nothing had happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After five seconds, the doors slid open with another mundane ping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leon’s breath came in ragged gasps, the light of the datapad still blazing uselessly in his hand while he stood frozen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stared into the hallway, the ominous command still ringing in his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>",1073,"2026-06-05T19:15:29.583Z",1,"novelbin.me","d472798dfabff2a64c1dfa2ff612c5fa2314fa0e0a0b1b6c37a61caa7087c00a","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-72","solflare-the-painter-s-secret-chapter-70",272,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fsolflare-the-painter-s-secret-cover.jpg"]