The Royal Military Academy's Impostor Owns a Dungeon [BL] novel Chapter 296

Chapter 296: Recalibrating

There was barely any warning and definitely no final countdown.

Only the jarring groan of metal and that sudden gut-wrenching pull of gravity that came with the ringing in his ears.

Luca came to first.

His vision spun as his eyes fluttered open. And he was confused, as the first thing he saw was a faint glow around them.

The air was thick with dust and heat, and everything hurt in a dull, muffled way. It was a very familiar feeling, but one he hadn’t felt in what seemed like forever.

Yet right now, it told him that they’d likely crashed into something, somewhere, and hard.

But despite the heat around him, there was this cooling presence against his side.

Xavier. Steady, solid, and protective.

The Prince hadn’t let go. His arm was still shielded over Luca in a reflexive arc, spiritual energy crackling faintly around them like a net trying to hold reality together.

Luca coughed, breath catching as the sharp scent of burning metal filled his lungs.

His hands trembled as they pushed against the debris-littered floor.

"X-Xavier?" he rasped.

The protector stirred, eyelids fluttering open, his gaze unfocused before narrowing sharply on Luca.

"You’re okay," Xavier said hoarsely, relief flashing in his expression before his muscles slackened, exhaustion winning for a second.

Then came the sound.

"Host—" D-29’s voice crackled weakly, distorted like it had been shoved through a cheese grater.

"Oh no."

"Oh no no no—SYSTEM FAILURE. Host, my systems are compromised! I cannot access the Dungeon!"

Luca blinked.

"...What?" Luca whispered, still dizzy.

D-29 wailed again, like a panicked kettle. "The Dungeon Space is unreachable!

Sid tried to console the wailing system but instead got pitying looks as D-29 started to understand what it must have been like for the guardian mecha.

Which really wasn’t so bad unless you were a system that normally had access to so much more.

"How could you live like this?!" complained the little system, which had been relegated to a mecha AI.

"..."

Luca barely processed the horror before a groan echoed nearby.

"Anyone there?" Luca called, his voice raw.

Kyle was slumped against a wall, surrounded by fragments of splintered crates and scorched plating. One arm was curled tightly around a mop of tangled blonde hair.

Ollie.

The bundled blonde looked like a dazed dumpling—clutching a half-eaten fruit strip and blinking up with glassy eyes, trembling faintly.

He hadn’t woken during the crash. Not really.

Only when a warm, sticky wetness began to spread beneath his cheek did he stir.

For a second, he panicked.

Was he going to drown? His dream had been of bungee jumping, so the feeling of wetness jolted him into waking up.

And then the smell hit him. Blood.

"!!!"

But then he realized—he wasn’t the one bleeding.

It was worse. The blood came from someone else entirely.

"Kyle—" Ollie’s voice cracked as he lifted his head, eyes widening in horror.

There was a gash on his temple, thin but steady, the blood trickling down past his cheek.

Kyle, in response, just tilted his head lazily.

"Hey," he greeted with a weak smirk. "Look who’s up." _{freёwebnoѵel.com}

"You’re—! But you’re—!" Ollie stammered, staring at the blood.

"Bleeding. Yeah. Head wounds. They’re dramatic like that." The adjutant tried to wave it off, but his hand didn’t quite reach.

"You’re bleeding," Ollie repeated, voice rising an octave.

"I’ve bled before. What’s new?" He deadpanned. "Pretty sure that’s not the worst part of today."

Ollie stared, lips wobbling.

"Don’t cry," Kyle added, brows furrowing. "You have to maintain your honor as the first person to nap through a full ship crash."

"I did not—" Ollie sniffled. "I’m not crying."

"Hmm. If you say so."

"You’re stupid," Ollie, face pink and eyes swimming, clutched him harder.

"And you’re heavy." Kyle coughed, leaning back against the broken panel as he consoled the trembling bundle.

[SYSTEM NOTICE: RECALIBRATING DUNGEON DIFFICULTY LEVEL...]

[NEW CHALLENGERS DETECTED]

[DIFFICULTY INCREASED TO: A-CLASS]

[WARNING: BOSS ROOM RESET IN PROGRESS.]