Roderick let out a sharp breath.
"You're telling me this whole thing is aimed at the third-year event?"
Kael didn't deny it.
Sylwen spoke quietly.
"Not just the event," she said. "The audience."
That made everything fall into place.
A massive arena.
Filled with people.
Nobles.
Representatives.
royalty.
And a system designed to destabilize mana structures.
Alaric exhaled slowly.
"…That's not an incident."
"No," Kael said.
"It's not."
Liora's voice was quieter now.
"Then what is it?"
Kael didn't hesitate.
"A demonstration."
The word sent a chill through the room.
Seraphine looked at the fragment again.
"…To show they can do it."
"Yes."
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Unavoidable.
Thalia clenched her fists slightly.
"…Then we really are too late."
Kael didn't correct her.
Because she wasn't wrong.
But Sylwen—
Didn't look convinced.
Her gaze remained steady, focused.
Thinking.
"There's still a gap," she said.
Everyone looked at her.
"A system like this doesn't just activate randomly," she continued. "There has to be a trigger. A final condition."
Kael's eyes shifted to her.
For the first time—
There was clear interest.
"…Correct," he said.
Alaric stepped forward.
"Then we find it."
Kael didn't stop him this time.
He simply said—
"Then you'd better be faster than they are. Best of luck."
Because now—
It wasn't about stopping something that might happen.
It was about racing against something that already had.
The moment Kael said it, the room fell into a different kind of silence.
Not confusion.
Not hesitation.
Understanding.
Whatever had been set in motion was no longer a distant threat or a hidden plot waiting to unfold. It was already moving, already progressing toward something inevitable. The only question left was whether they could reach the end before it did.
Sylwen was the first to speak.
"The trigger," she said calmly. "What would it be tied to?"
Kael didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked at the fragment again, as if confirming something in his own mind before responding.
"If I had to guess," he said, "it wouldn't be time-based. That would be too predictable."
Seraphine nodded slightly.
"Then it has to be event-based," she said. "Something guaranteed to happen during the third-year event."
Thalia's expression sharpened.
"A peak," she said. "A moment where mana output is at its highest."
Roderick frowned.
"…Like the final matches."
Alaric exhaled.
"That's when the entire system is under maximum strain," he said. "If something disrupts it then—"
"It won't just fail," Sylwen finished. "It will collapse."
Kael didn't deny it.
"That would be the intended outcome," he said.
Liora's voice was quieter now.
"…With thousands of people watching."
"More than watching," Seraphine added. "Present."
That was the real danger.
Not just destruction.
Exposure.
A message.
Sylwen's gaze hardened slightly.
"Then we don't stop the system," she said. "We stop the trigger."
Kael looked at her.
"That would be the fastest way," he admitted.
Alaric stepped forward.
"Then where do we start?"
For a moment, Kael didn't answer. Then he spoke, his tone more direct than before.
"The arena's core," he said. "If the fragment is a relay, then the trigger will be linked to the central structure."
Roderick cracked his knuckles.
"Finally something straightforward."
"It won't be," Thalia said immediately. "If they've gone this far, the core won't be unguarded."
Sylwen nodded.
"And it won't be obvious."
Seraphine added, "We're not looking for something visible. We're looking for something designed not to be noticed."
That narrowed it down—and made it harder.
Alaric looked at Kael.
"Can we access the core?"
Kael held his gaze for a moment.
Then he stepped aside.
"Yes."
That was all they needed.
They moved immediately.
Kael sighed after they left.
"Since we didn't see students moving where they should not, it means spell of Principal failed. He won't be happy."
Meanwhile all of them were running to arena.
The path to the arena felt different now. Every corridor, every structure, every flow of mana they passed seemed like it could be hiding something. The academy, which had once felt secure and controlled, now felt layered—like something had been built beneath it without anyone realizing.
By the time they reached the arena, the space was quieter than before.
Preparations for the third-year event were ongoing, but the central area had limited access. Workers moved in the distance, setting up structures, adjusting formations, reinforcing barriers.
Everything looked normal.
That was the problem.
Sylwen stepped forward first, her gaze scanning the area.
"Spread out," she said. "Don't look for the obvious."
They didn't question it.
Alaric moved toward the central platform, observing the mana flow patterns. Roderick circled the perimeter, watching for anything out of place. Thalia stayed near the core structure, her attention fixed on movement and alignment. Liora monitored the surroundings, ensuring no one approached too closely.
Seraphine—
Closed her eyes.
She wasn't looking.
She was thinking.
"If it's a cognitive concealment…" she murmured.
Sylwen glanced at her.
"Then we're not supposed to notice it," Seraphine continued. "Which means we already have."
That made Sylwen pause.
"…Explain."
Seraphine opened her eyes.
"We're not searching for something new," she said. "We're searching for something we've already ignored."
Silence followed.
Then—
Thalia moved.
Her gaze snapped toward a specific point near the core.
"…There," she said.
Everyone turned.
At first glance—
Nothing.
Just part of the structure.
Normal.
Unremarkable.
Exactly like everything else.
But now that they were looking at it—
It felt wrong.
Sylwen stepped closer.
"…Another fragment."
Not identical.
But similar.
Hidden.
Integrated.
Waiting.
Alaric reached for it.
"Wait," Seraphine said sharply.
He stopped.
"Don't touch it blindly," she continued. "If this is the trigger, direct contact might activate it."
Roderick frowned.
"Then how do we stop it?"
Sylwen's gaze sharpened.
"We don't remove it," she said.
They all looked at her.
"We disrupt it."
That was different.
Seraphine understood immediately.
"If it's part of a network," she said, "then breaking its function is enough."
Thalia nodded.
"Not destruction," she added. "Interference."
Alaric exhaled slowly.
"…Then we do it carefully."
He adjusted his stance, focusing not on force—but precision.
Sylwen stepped beside him.
"Together," she said.
No hesitation.
They moved at the same time.
Not attacking—
But redirecting.
Mana flowed, controlled and measured, disrupting the alignment of the fragment without triggering it directly. The structure resisted at first, the concealment effect flickering slightly as if trying to maintain its state.
Then—
It broke.
Not violently.
Not explosively.
Just—
Stopped.
The presence vanished.
The fragment remained—
But whatever it had been connected to—
Was gone.
Silence followed.
Then—
The mana around the arena stabilized.
Completely.
Seraphine exhaled quietly.
"…It's over."
Roderick looked around.
"…That's it?"
Thalia nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Alaric lowered his hand.
"…We stopped it."
Sylwen didn't speak immediately.
She looked at the fragment one last time.
Then turned away.
"Yes," she said.
"We did."
And somewhere—
Far beyond the academy—
Something that had been set in motion—
Came to a halt.
.....
The Demon Realm
The Demon King's Palace.
It was an enormous fortress built from dark stone that seemed to absorb the light around it. Countless demonic runes had been carved into its walls, and the pressure radiating from those runes was enough to make even high-ranking demons uncomfortable.
Deep inside that palace was the throne room.
It was vast.
Rows of enormous pillars stretched toward the ceiling, each one carved with scenes of ancient battles between demons and humans. Some showed armies clashing across ruined landscapes, while others depicted powerful demons standing over the corpses of their enemies.
At the far end of the throne room stood a massive throne.
The throne itself was made from a strange black material resembling obsidian, although no ordinary obsidian could withstand the power contained within it.
Sitting upon that throne was the Demon King.
He looked toward the demon kneeling before him.
The demon was wearing full armor.
Dark metallic plates covered his entire body, leaving only a portion of his face visible beneath his helmet. A sword rested at his waist, while a long cloak hung behind him.
Despite being a Demon Knight of considerable strength, he kept his head lowered.
There was no arrogance in his posture.
No unnecessary movement.
The Demon King rested one hand against the armrest of his throne.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he finally spoke.
"Have the answer arrived?"
The Demon Knight immediately understood what he meant.
"Yes."
His voice echoed softly throughout the enormous chamber.
Then he continued.
"The armies of all the Demon Generals have been trained to an even greater degree since our last retreat on your orders. Their soldiers have been subjected to repeated battlefield exercises, and the Demon Generals themselves have personally overseen much of the training."
The Demon King remained silent.
The Demon Knight continued.
"Their formations have been improved. Their coordination has also improved considerably. They have been instructed to fight under various conditions, including unfavorable terrain, limited visibility, sudden attacks, and prolonged engagements."
He paused for a moment before adding, "The generals have also ordered their soldiers to train to fight against the tactics commonly used by human armies."
The Demon King listened quietly.
Then a chuckle escaped his lips.
"Good."
The single word echoed through the throne room.
The Demon Knight lowered his head slightly.
The Demon King leaned back against his throne.
"We will begin our attacks again after a while."
There was no excitement in his voice.
No anger.
No bloodlust.
He simply spoke as though discussing an inevitable event that had already been decided.
"My wounds are almost healed."
The Demon Knight remained completely still.
The Demon King looked down at his own hand.
For the briefest moment, a faint darkness seemed to gather around his fingers before disappearing.
"And the seal is beginning to lift."
Those words made the Demon Knight's eyes widen slightly because he is one of demons who have seen The Demon King fight before seal was placed on him.
He immediately lowered his head again, hiding his reaction.
The Demon King continued.
"When I am ready, I want every Demon General to be prepared."
His voice became slightly more serious.
"I don't want them relying solely on their strength. I want them to have their armies ready too. They need to understand what it means to command an army during an actual war."
The Demon King paused.
"We have spent enough time retreating."
The Demon Knight remained silent.
The Demon King looked toward the enormous windows behind the throne.
Beyond them stretched the dark landscape of the Demon Realm.
"There is no point possessing an army if that army doesn't know how to fight."
The Demon Knight wasn't sure whether those words were meant for him.
Perhaps the Demon King was simply talking to himself.
Perhaps he expected an answer.
Or perhaps he was merely thinking aloud.
The Demon Knight decided that silence was the safest choice.
He had learned long ago that there were moments when speaking was unnecessary.
The Demon King didn't seem bothered by his silence.