♪♪♪
Max swaggered his way through a secluded garden path, whistling a cheerful tune. It had been barely fifteen minutes since he'd parted ways with Lucan after the performance, occasionally patting the enrollment crystal safely tucked in his pocket. His heart was still beating fast from what happened.
The chaos left in his wake had made a quick departure necessary. Naturally he could not afford to hang around as that would lead more to than a harsh lecturing. In fact, he had to run out with parts of his costume still remaining.
He may even have his enrolment eligibility rights revoked.
But he believed it would be fine, time was on his side. The more people that catch wind of his performance, the more people will know about his greatness. Despite the Academy policies, the academy certainly favored talents, so they would likely not send him away.
The garden was practically deserted, with most people having begun making their way to the welcoming ceremony. Perfect chance for checking on his quest status without prying eyes.
Max leaned against a moss-covered statue, a grin playing on his lips as he mentally opened his status window.
"Let's see that reward."
Anticipation built up as the translucent interface materialized in his vision.
His grin stiffened, then faltered completely.
[URGENT MAIN QUEST: Make a Memorable Academy Entrance]
Conditions:
Must be witnessed by at least 100 studentsMust become the talk of the academy for at least one weekMust satisfy the System's minimum "memorable" requirement
Reward: ???
Time limit: 0 hours 58 minutes
Failure: Termination of System, Return to Original Extra Status
"What the actual fuck?"
Max stared at the quest notification, disbelief rapidly turning into indignation.
He'd just delivered the performance of a lifetime!
He'd hijacked an official academy production, created a Dark Lord character out of thin air, engaged in an actual armed fight on the back of a dragon costume, died dramatically in the arms of the hero, and escaped without being caught.
How was that not enough?
"A joke yeah?" he muttered, pacing back and forth. "A sick, twisted joke from the author."
Max ran his hands through his hair, trying to make sense of it.
The first thing he thought of was that the reward might be delayed.
This was plausible.
He needed to become "the talk of the academy for at least one week," and barely thirty minutes had passed since his grand finale. Obviously, this condition couldn't be verified yet.
But that didn't shake his unease.
Despite its logical reasoning, it was purely hypothetical.
The other possibility was that he'd failed to satisfy the "minimum memorable requirement," whatever that meant. But that seemed even harder to believe. He did not believe he was being arrogant. Even here, far from the performance stage in a nearly deserted garden, he'd heard excited chattering about the Dark Lord who had upended the traditional performance.
"Maybe it was the mask? But I definitely took it off during the death scene. Was a face reveal not enough? Did I need to announce my name to the entire audience?"
With such limited information, he couldn't be sure. After a moment of frustrated contemplation, his eyes fixed on the quest title.
Make a Memorable Academy Entrance
"Academy entrance..."
Max froze, a cold realization washing over him.
"The welcoming ceremony. The academy entrance isn't the fucking doorway—it's the ceremony marking my entrance into the academy!"
While he wasn't completely sure, the time limit did coincide closely to the timing of the welcoming ceremony. If that were the case, he'd wasted valuable preparation time on a performance that, while spectacular, didn't actually fulfill the quest's primary requirement.
He had less than an hour to make a truly memorable entrance at the welcoming ceremony... or lose the System forever.
Unfortunately, this felt more plausible than the other things he thought of.
"Argh! Whatever this damn Quest really wants, I will do it!"
Max Draeven was not going to live his life as a dog-licking extra.
If there was a chance to change his fate, he would continue to grasp onto it no matter what happens.
There was that one quote in one of those few translated martial art novels I read. What did the protagonist say again when he screamed to the stormy sky? "My fate is in my hands, not in the Author's!!"
Though Max may have made a slight change to the sentence…
His right hand clenched into a fist and his left hand wrapped over it.
He appeared like a thug about to throw hands.
"So you want more right Author? Want something more memorable? I'll give you a goddamn spectacle they'll still be talking about a hundred years from now."
The first step was reaching the ceremony venue. From what Max recalled of the novel, the welcoming ceremony was a same old boring formal affair where the Headmistress delivered a lengthy speech about tradition and expectations while the new first-years stood at attention in neat rows.
Max emerged from the garden path onto a wider avenue, checking his surroundings.
The crowd had thinned considerably as students and visitors either headed to the ceremony or dispersed as the Academy's fair stalls began closing down for the event. Vendors were packing up their wares, performers were stowing their props, and the festive atmosphere was shifting toward the more formal ceremony to come.
In the distance, he could see the Serenity Haven.
It was a sprawling open space dotted with magnificent ancient trees where the welcoming ceremony would be held. And beyond it, rising like a grand magic tower over the Academy grounds, stood the mysterious Chronokos's Tower, its massive clock faces glinting in the afternoon sun.
He needed to move quickly—
Ffft!
A faint whistle cut through the air.
Max's instincts screamed danger a split second before something thudded into the tree beside him, quivering at eye level.
What?
A bolt.
He had not been aware of it at all.
Did it miss?
No.
It was intentional.
A warning shot.
"Hello, crystal thief."
Max turned slowly, keeping his expression neutral despite the alarm bells ringing in his head. The woman who stepped into view was tall and lean, moving with a grace of a predator. A distinctive scar bisected her left eyebrow, and her cold brown eyes were piercing.
This was no student.
And she did not appear to be Academy security either.
"Uh… hello? Do I know you… lady? I think you got the wrong person, don't you reckon? I'm just an ordinary student heading to the welcoming ceremony."
Max carefully put his weight to the balls of his feet.
The scarred woman wore a thin smile.
"Administrator Carrington sends his regards. He's quite eager to discuss the enrollment crystal his son was supposed to receive."
"Sounds like a personal problem."
Max edged sideways toward the avenue's center where he'd have more room to maneuver.
"Maybe he should've prepared better for the test."
The woman's smile didn't waver.
"Oh, this isn't about the test anymore. This is about punishment for theft, assault, and ...everything else you've done today. My associates and I have been authorized to retrieve the crystal and bring you in to face consequences."
Suddenly, four figures emerged from various hiding spots around the avenue. They moved with coordination, fanning out to cut off escape routes. Each wore nondescript clothing, but Max noticed the quality of their boots and the professional way they carried themselves.
These guys don't look the part of the academy… Mercenaries? Some kind of hidden special unit?
"Five against one?"
Max shook his head with a forced grin.
"And here I thought the Carringtons at least pretended to care about fair play."
"Quite a thing to say after handling Carrington's son like a fiddle. Fair play is for tournaments and children's games. You have something that doesn't belong to you. Return it now, and your punishment might be merciful."
Doesn't belong to me? I'm getting sick of being treated as a thief.
Running was the obvious choice, but these weren't easily-fooled students. These were trained professionals who'd likely anticipated his escape routes.
Fighting was a big joke. With his poor mana and complete lack of combat training, he wouldn't last ten seconds.
That left only one option: trickery.
"Sheesh fine."
Max sighed dramatically, reaching into his pocket.
"Why bother when you know your outmatched. No crystal is worth getting beaten to death for."
He slowly withdrew his hand, keeping it closed around an imaginary object. The associates had their focus drawn to his fist.
"Just promise you'll thrown in some good words for Junior to go easy on me."
He took a small step forward as if preparing to hand over the crystal.
The scarred woman extended her hand, impatience spreading across her intimidating face.
"The crystal. Now."
Max brought his fist forward, then abruptly dropped to one knee and slammed his palm against the ground.
"Quake Step!"
He channeled his mana into the spell, far more than necessary. The ground beneath the avenue shuddered violently, sending up a cloud of dust and debris. It wasn't powerful enough to actually damage the stone paving, but Max made the most of it.
In a flash of quick thinking, he grabbed a handful of fine decorative sand from a nearby garden border and flung it upward as the spell took effect.
"What the—" one of the attackers coughed, shielding his face.
In the split second of confusion, Max bolted toward the narrowest gap between two attackers, using their momentary blindness to his advantage.
"Naive."
A hand grasped at the ornate shoulder piece of his Dark Lord costume.
"Go ahead," Max said.
Max had anticipated the move. He let the decorative piece tear away as he ducked into a run.
If anything, it made him a little faster.
The emerald cloak still remained secured underneath. He'd need its wind essence later if he had any hope of escaping.
Didn't think my hasty runaway after the performance ended up giving me an extra life.
"After him!"
The scarred woman's voice cut through the settling dust.
"Alive, preferably, just make sure he can't walk away!"
That last part sent a chill down Max's spine.
These people weren't just trying to bring him in. They had authorization to use serious force.
For the first time since arriving in this world, Max felt genuine fear.
This wasn't a game anymore.
It wasn't even about the quest now.
It was about survival of his life.
Not about survival of the future.
But being able to make it out alive today.
With his limited ability, his only real chance to escape was to use his wits and his knowledge of the Academy layout to rely on. And as he sprinted down the avenue, the sounds of pursuit rapidly closing in behind him, one thought burned in his mind.
Junior's father didn't just want to fail his enrollment test.
He wanted him gone—permanently.