As the two stared at each other in disbelief...
"Everyone, please take your seats!"
A sharp voice echoed from the side of the stage. A woman in dazzling, ornate knight's armor stood holding a microphone.
She scanned the room, her gaze authoritative, before passing the microphone to another woman beside her. Then, she stepped onto the stage, microphone in hand, and brought it to her lips.
"All students are to sit down and remain silent. Failure to comply will result in immediate referral to the military disciplinary committee on your first day."
"Discipline and order are required here and now. The Headmistress of this prestigious academy will soon deliver her address."
Her eyes swept across the students as she moved casually across the stage.
"Before the Headmistress arrives, I will introduce myself—but first, you must understand the proper procedures and discipline expected within this academy."
As they listened, Milosh hesitated but finally decided to sit—even if it meant failing his mission. He could make up for it later.
But for Loren, it was a matter of pride.
She decided to follow him as he moved, despite an empty seat beside her. She wouldn't risk the system's punishment—especially one involving unfamiliar, potentially embarrassing underwear. As someone who had lived as a man, she knew some types were downright awful.
"No risks. Just do what's required."
She trailed behind Milosh, who finally found a seat. There was an empty spot near him.
"Luck, be on my side...!"
She quickened her pace, nearly reaching the seat as the woman continued listing rules. But just as she approached the final step...
Someone else sat down in the seat—without a word.
Loren froze, staring at the man now occupying the spot. Milosh watched her, growing increasingly nervous.
"What does she want? Why is she following me? Did I do something? Is she suspicious of me?" he thought.
Before anyone could react, a series of loud crashes echoed through the hall.
BOOM... BOOM... BOOM...
One after another, three chairs collapsed—including those of several important female students. The entire audience turned to watch, forgetting the woman on stage.
Then, without warning—more chairs gave way.
BOOM! BOOM! SSSSS—CRASH!
Loren hadn't realized her sprites had sabotaged so many chairs. Even high-ranking students were now humiliated, sprawled on the floor.
The woman on stage paused, her expression shifting as she observed the chaos. Her eyes scanned the collapsed chairs and the embarrassed students—then locked onto Loren.
"Dammit... she sensed the residual mana."
While everyone was distracted by the falling chairs, Milosh, the woman on stage, and her assistant were all staring directly at Loren.
"Crap! I didn't expect this... I need to get out of here before a second warning appears on my record!"
As the noise of the students began to rise once more in the hall...
"Sileeeeeence! This is the final warning..."
"Anyone daring to utter another word here will be expelled permanently."
Loren's tension reached its breaking point. She felt as if she were sweating from every pore. She raised her head slightly. "It's fine... at least it's just underwear," she told herself, deciding to move and search for another seat, surrendering to the situation.
But when she turned...
BOOM.
She turned to find the protagonist's chair had finally collapsed.
"Wait, I don't remember sabotaging this one..."
Although she had tampered with some seats randomly, she hadn't expected this—especially not one belonging to a main character. She didn't dwell on it too much.
Even as another chair fell, not a single word was spoken.
Loren had no choice but to take another seat... only to find the protagonist sitting beside her a second later, brushing off his clothes with his usual dramatic flair.
[Mission accomplished... 20 points acquired.]
Loren breathed a sigh of relief. She had no idea what would have happened if she'd been forced to wear that strange underwear.
"Right, I haven't introduced myself yet... I am..." the woman on stage continued after a moment.
Both Milosh and Loren finished in their minds: "Lisa Montgom..."
"...First Knight of the Supreme Holy Order, and this is my assistant... Fiona."
She gestured toward the woman in armor standing below the stage.
"By order of the King, to teach the cubs of this school what it truly means to be a student here... and to test your strength."
"But I need not explain."
"You will understand better from the Headmistress herself."
The figure on stage withdrew in the blink of an eye, replaced by a dazzling, brilliant glow. In an instant, a mirror-like surface of geometric precision materialized, and from it emerged a woman with captivating brown eyes, flowing black hair, and a fitted robe that accentuated her curves.
Yet the aura surrounding her elevated her far beyond mere physical beauty in the eyes of all present. Beneath this lethal exterior lay an ancient beast, hiding centuries of fangs behind a deceptively youthful face.
"Before anything else… welcome. Whether you are him or her, in this moment, at this hour, you will be changed within the walls of the Guardian Military Academy."
"The foremost institution in education… glorious across two hundred years… beneath every stone, every corner, every book, lies a great honor that flows through here every second."
"And upon entering these grounds… you are no longer just an ordinary individual. No. You are a part… a pillar… a foundation of this place. You share in its pride."
Her voice was soft, yet carried a weight of authority that commanded absolute silence and attention from everyone.
"Here, you have been carefully chosen to protect your mother—yes, your mother—to protect this very kingdom."
"Here, recruit, you will be taught everything you need to become a pride of this nation."
"Smile… for one day, others will smile because of you. Thousands of warriors shed blood and tears… yet others smile for them even after death."
"Their pure hearts are engraved high above the horizons."
"If no one remembers them personally, history will remember them as the true saviors."
"Here, you will become the new generation that carries the banner, that continues and elevates the legacy of those before you. You will build and achieve what those before you only dreamed of."
Loren looked around with astonished eyes.
Yes, deep down, she admitted: she was the one who had written this speech.
In the past, she had felt she was crafting ideal, unparalleled words… but now she saw the reality: these words were being delivered to mere teenagers.
It was useless.
It was like telling a lab rat: "You must endure for the advancement of humanity." What did it have to do with anything, really?
And in truth, when this old woman said:
"You are the guardians of this nation!"
'You are merely cannon fodder.'
"History will remember you!"
'As dead.'
"You will put smiles on people's faces!"
'In truth, no one will be left to smile. Everyone will die.'
But there was one undeniable truth:
Even if she was deceiving these children and brainwashing them to die…
Who would do it if they didn't?
Even if a thousand died, with no guarantee that millions of soldiers and civilians would be saved afterward…
Who would ensure the survival of the human race?
Who would stand and fight for those who couldn't?
In this life, you come to realize that you will eventually die.
You cannot fight life… you cannot cheat death.
In this world, you did not choose anything: not your race, not your life, not your family, not even your language.
But you can choose one thing: how you die.
To die bravely on the battlefield is more honorable than to die of old age.
In the end, both will be forgotten… but at least you know you resisted until your last breath.
"So, young ones, even if you feel the world is unjust… change it with your will!"
"For when your mothers gave birth to you, it was destined that you would live a life where you could make a difference."
"Today, before tomorrow arrives… the Eastern Fortress of Athena has fallen, and every day, the brave perish."
"What guarantee do you have that you won't be next? What will protect your lives and the lives of others?"
Loren and Milosh glanced at each other, momentarily forgetting their own problems.
They realized that even if this was just the world of a novel…
Their deaths here could be very real.
And they had to prepare for the Forest Incident.