The audience whispered as each team appeared — from Calamity Academy, Meteor Academy, Light Eye, to Earthborn, Mother Tree, Melody, and Three Hands.And of course, the top three academies: Blue Light, Gray Wall, and Gate — with Gate holding the No.1 rank for the last five consecutive years.
The heads of the academies stood to represent their schools, but among them, one stood out the most — Gate Academy's representative.Golden curls, emerald eyes, and the noble grace of a highborn.She was a gem, not only in beauty but also in talent and aristocratic prestige — Janeus Phereous, the Narcissus of Gate Academy, and princess of the Monsoly Empire.
Just one glance from her silenced the entire crowd.
'That's some powerful aura farming,' I clapped quietly, impressed.To be fair, she was the only second-year among all nine academies — and her debut was more striking than anyone else's.
"Damn, look at her, gorgeous, isn't she?" Marcus reached for more popcorn, adjusting his sunglasses. If not for the school uniform, anyone would've thought he was on vacation."You do know we have to compete tomorrow, right?" I turned to him, tilting my head. "You're not planning to prepare at all?""Relax, a few hours of prep is all I need. I'll get to it later~" Marcus gulped down a drink and ignored me."...Suit yourself."I sighed and left him be — talking to him was useless anyway.
As I wandered around the stands, I glanced up at the massive coliseum.It could seat around 150,000 people — not including staff, teams, or contestants.This was apparently a standard stadium in this world. That meant either people here had an intense appetite for watching others fight to the death, or the world's population was absurdly high. I honestly wasn't sure which.
Looking at the crowd's eyes — hungry to skip introductions and jump straight to combat — I couldn't help but smirk, memories of the old world creeping back.Slaves in ancient Rome, criminals without refuge, forced to fight for others' entertainment — blood and tears traded for a handful of coins and cheers.And now? We, educated students, nobles, even royalty, were doing the same thing for prizes and prestige.No different, really.
Smiling faintly, I passed through the flowing crowd toward the exit.A guard stood by the door — our eyes met briefly, neither greeting nor gesture exchanged.Thud.I bumped into the door, adjusted my posture, then continued walking.
In my hand was a small chocolate bar — just the length of my palm. I slipped it into my spatial ring and smiled quietly to myself.Time to get ready for the week ahead.
The sky was painted with sunset hues, and students from other academies were rushing about, preparing equipment and supplies.The first day's challenge was survival — gathering tools and necessities would be critical.
The sudden bustle made sense: they'd only been informed of the test's details a few hours ago.
Still, for nobles, such chaos was beneath them. They had wealth, influence, servants — even underground dealings were tolerated so long as they weren't too blatant.After all, the tournament gathered nobles and factions from all over the Empire — including rival powers. Caution was wise, but even that was meaningless when compared to a black hole's singularity.
Before the colossal gates — towering tens of meters high, as if built to repel Titans — I took a deep breath and approached the guards.This was Gate Academy, both fortress and the most prestigious, successful institution in the empire.I wasn't here to enter — I couldn't anyway.I was just waiting… for someone. Or rather, two someones.
If anyone thought I could stop a terrorist plot by myself, or that my One Line group could handle it, they'd be naïve.The future had already shifted because of me, and the forces involved here were far beyond my reach.So — I'd just have to cling to someone stronger, right?
From afar, two figures approached.I popped a mint into my mouth, brushed my hair back, straightened my clothes, and walked toward them.
A young man with golden hair and gray-blue eyes, and beside him, a girl with curled golden locks and emerald eyes. They were chatting cheerfully.
I stepped forward to intercept them, raised my hand, and started to speak—"Excu—""Sorry, I'm busy," she said, coldly brushing past.
I froze for a second. No greeting, no glance — just walked right by.Keeping my composure, I turned around and reached out to the young man's shoulder — but he sidestepped."Apologies. We're not interested in talking," he said curtly.
'You've got to be kidding me.'To salvage what little pride I had left, I muttered:"Congratulations on slaying that sea monster, Promet."
Both of them stopped.Promet turned his head, eyes narrowing."...You—who are you?""It was almost a Leviathan, wasn't it? Almost. It was still young, after all."
Promet froze, countless thoughts racing behind his expression.
"And I apologize for this," I said, bowing slightly and handing them both my card."I'd like to discuss a potential cooperation — just a mutual transaction, nothing more. Agreed?"
"Three seconds."A blade appeared at my throat — the girl's eyes glimmered coldly."Three seconds. Tell me who leaked you that information."
You could call that encounter… a failure.I had a chance to speak, but it went downhill fast — I got threatened, scolded, dismissed, everything.
And now… I might officially be branded as a repeat offender — information trafficking, collusion, fraud — all with the empire's princess.Yeah. Illegal, sure. But what could I do? It was too important to dance around.
TOEEEEEEEE!!A horn blared, drawing everyone's attention. A thousand students stood in identical white uniforms, ready for the start of the trial.
'I just hope… she listened,' I thought, remembering last night's humiliating conversation.
"READY — BEGIN!"
Suddenly, darkness swept across everyone's vision.Bodies that had moved freely froze in place.Everything stopped.
Teleportation magic.