"What the hell—"
A soldier shouted as he witnessed something he could not believe.
The grotesque demon in the form of a locomotive suddenly appeared, and an enormous explosion swallowed everything in black smoke.It lasted only a moment—mere seconds—yet the devastation was catastrophic.And yet, no one was injured.
The reason was simple: the instant the demon manifested, a phantom had appeared, shielding them from the blast.
It emerged out of thin air, twisting its body to cast a colossal shadow that formed a barricade between them and the inferno.
Then a figure walked out from the crowd, pushing the soldiers aside.
Ignoring their shouts, he moved straight to the front line.
When the explosion finally subsided and left only suffocating smoke, the shadow dispersed it, revealing a barren clearing where not even the ruins of a single structure remained.
"A—dammit, that was my house!"
"Oh God, look at the city…!"
Nearly the entire eastern, southern, and northern districts had been erased—nothing left but dust and scorched earth, not even a trace that anything had ever stood there. It was less an explosion than total annihilation.
If not for the mysterious shadow, the central and western districts would have vanished as well.
What the hell? That thing was supposed to be Rank 9. Did it evolve?
The captain—wearing ornate armor bearing an emblem—stood frozen. He stammered, unable to think of any countermeasure, only capable of screaming for everyone to retreat and call for reinforcements.
But then the locomotive-demon, circling through the sky, seemed to notice them and dove downward at horrifying speed.
Everything seemed decided.
Until the man who had pushed forward earlier stepped out.
No one knew where he got that strange dark red spear, but they were too terrified to care. Besides, everyone could see he only had a Rank 3 mana core. Charging in was suicide. He was probably just thrashing in desperation.
He lifted his leg and made a throwing motion—not of a spear, but of a baseball pitch—and then—
Boom.
…
I stared at the obliterated remains of the demon train with exhaustion weighing on my face. I had sprinted like a madman from the princess's location the moment I sensed the demon awakening.
And to make matters worse, I only had a Rank 3 core—barely above an ordinary person. Pathetically weak.
So of course I almost fainted after summoning the spear—and threw it like a baseball instead of a javelin because of a stupid mix-up.
In the end, the world only cares about results.I could only hope no one saw that moment.
Leaning onto the ground, I slumped down, trying to steady my breathing, vision blurring into indistinct shapes.
After all, I relied more on "claws" and "fangs" than on raw physical strength. I couldn't expect anything more from this body.
"You look like a man about to die."
"Shut up, Lusk. You talk too damn much."
The skull fell silent immediately. He didn't bother replying and wandered off to look at the demon's fallen corpse.
I forced myself to stand, eyes scanning around. The area was already devoid of people.
Remembering the conversation with the princess just minutes earlier, I instinctively looked up at the demon.
'Why did you take this path?'
'Because I chose it. Time has passed, and I must bear my responsibilities… and my karmic burden.'
'Karmic burden? Responsibility? A criminal has responsibilities?'
'Humans are free. And because they're free… they can do anything.'
I took the flute from my pocket and raised it to my lips.
'And freedom is the heaviest sentence humanity has ever been given.'
Fuuu—
The sound of the flute rose just as the demon's body hit the ground and began to disintegrate.
…
At the dormitory district of Gate Academy, a terrorist attack had erupted.
Many had been killed or kidnapped; others ran in panic or hid like rats.
Wellay slipped across the rooftops, cloaking herself among the bushes and whispering an invisibility spell.
In her hand was a wooden staff about one meter long—like the guiding cane used by the blind.
Landing silently, she made her way along the tree-lined path, carefully avoiding the terrorists.
She was almost out of the dormitory district when a long shadow stretched across the ground.
A thin, malnourished-looking arm appeared—yet massive, longer than an entire row of houses—rising upward.
"Damn lunatics!"
Wellay bolted immediately. Staying meant instant death—without even the chance to resist.
But when she burst into a wide street, a long line of figures stood waiting—dressed in strange outfits, white garments adorned with symbols from playing cards.
"Bring it out."
One stepped forward—brown-blond hair, a blue coat, red inner shirt, and various ornamental accessories.
"King of Clubs, you're appearing in person? How formal."
"Shut up, you damn hag."
Wellay clearly didn't intend to hand over the staff. She slid out a playing card and flicked it toward the group.
"...Is that what you choose? Betrayal?"
"You're asking that? Are you stupid?"
Clink.
The group raised their weapons, ready to attack. Wellay couldn't see behind her, but things were clearly escalating rapidly.
Then her vision blurred. A crushing headache surged through her skull—and not only hers, but the group's as well.
"You bitch—how dare you—"
"Gah—!"
One by one, they collapsed, unable to move—helpless before whatever force had struck them.
…
I am not strong.But I possess something no one else does: preparation.
If I lack strength, I compensate for it.And the path I chose was information control.Since arriving in this world and entering its underbelly, I chose to use knowledge as a weapon to make up for my weakness.
So when a crisis like this comes, I always have safeguards.I'm not arrogant about being smart, so I never involve myself in anything without guaranteeing at least one path to victory—or retreat.
And for this terrorist attack, I had prepared in advance.
The three treasures from the exam: the gloves, the glasses, and the flute.Three items for the three victors.
They were the non-negotiable reason I enrolled in the Blue Light Academy.