[Mission in progress...
Objective: Death looms around the corner. Survive until tomorrow [00:17:34:32].
Reward: An affinity.
Failure: Death.
Respawn: 2/5]
Shit. I'm completely screwed.
"The principles of mana liquidation are essential in the study of fusion and relic creation..."
The monotonous voice of the teacher barely registered as background noise. Once again, I found myself right back in the same place after yet another failed attempt. The same damn classroom. The same damn desk. It felt pointless—I had just burned through another respawn, and for what? Absolutely nothing.
I clicked my tongue in frustration.
I hadn't even made it to the staff quarters before I hit a wall, literally and figuratively. Students in the Standard Zone weren't allowed to leave without permission, and the academy had made DAMN sure of it. The place, as I was starting to fully grasp, was divided into three main zones.
The Genesis Zone housed first to fifth-year students—the babies, basically.
The Standard Zone was where I currently rotted, spanning years six to eight. We were in our final year here, which meant a break was coming soon. Our first real break in eight years. The thought of reuniting with families had most students buzzing with excitement, but I could see the terror underneath. Everyone was terrified of failure, of being held back another year. Of disappointing the people waiting for them.
Then there was the Upper Zone. Years nine to eleven. That's where things got SERIOUS. Real expeditions into dungeons and rifts. Real danger, real death. For now, we only got a taste of that nightmare through VR exams and practice runs, but everyone knew what was waiting.
But enough about the academy's structure. The fact remained: I couldn't leave. I'd nearly died trying. The restriction collar clamped around my neck, designed to keep us obedient little students in line, had almost strangled the life out of me when I ventured too far from the Standard Zone. The thing tightened like a noose, cutting off air until black spots danced across my vision.
But that wasn't what killed me last time.
No, something else did.
After my brilliant plan to find a teacher crashed and burned, I decided to change tactics. I aimed for the rooftop instead. It made sense at the time—all I had to do was survive until tomorrow. Hiding out on the roof seemed like a safe bet. Isolated. Quiet. Away from whatever the hell was hunting me. I figured the teachers would track me down eventually because of these cursed collars broadcasting our locations. That was the plan anyway: wait for them to find me, get escorted to safety, and from there I could think of a new strategy.
It didn't work.
I was killed before I even made it to the roof. The elevator didn't go that high, which meant I had to take the stairs. Big mistake. HUGE mistake. Whoever's after me, my assailant, they were waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Probably had been watching me fumble around like an idiot the entire time.
It happened so fast. Too fast. I barely saw anything, but this time I caught a glimpse of SOMETHING. A weapon. Was it a whip? The attack happened in the blink of an eye, and then I was dead again. Just like that. No dramatic last words, no final revelation. Just pain, darkness, and then this classroom again.
I let out a long breath.
And now I'm back at square one.
DING. DING. DING.
Lunchtime. Again.
I need to stay calm. There's something I've been overlooking, some detail I keep missing in the chaos. All these deaths can't be for nothing. The system wouldn't give me respawns if there wasn't a way to survive this. What am I missing? What keeps happening that I'm not paying attention to?
Wait.
What have I been doing the SAME in every single retry? There must be a pattern, a constant variable I can isolate. Think, Leo, THINK. What always happens right before—
"Leo, can I borrow your notebook? I didn't copy anything down."
Jayden stood beside my desk, scratching the back of his head with that sheepish grin he always wore. That familiar gesture that I'd seen three times now without even realizing it.
"Um... su—"
Wait.
THIS IS IT.
How could I have missed this every single damn time? Jayden asking for my notebook—that's the ONE thing that's happened in EVERY retry. It's been staring me in the face like a neon sign, and I was too focused on running away to see it.
Time to try something new.
"Oh, sorry, someone else asked for it first," I lied smoothly, standing up quickly before he could respond. Before he could insist. Before he could do whatever the hell he'd been planning.
Jayden said nothing. Just stared at me. His expression shifted for a fraction of a second—was that a frown? Or something darker?
I heard someone call out beside him, and that's when I noticed the girls sitting at the desk cluster near the windows.
Wait—were they always THERE?
I had been so wrapped up in my own survival that I'd completely missed them. Anna with her perfect posture and honey-colored hair. Emy with her sharp eyes that seemed to calculate everything. The heroines of the academy, the ones everyone whispered about in the hallways.
"Sure, let's go, Anna. You coming, Emy?" Jayden said, his tone light again. Friendly. Like nothing had happened.
Of course. The heroines. They'd been here the whole time, sitting close enough to hear everything. But if they were with Jayden, why did he always try to get MY notebook? It didn't make sense. Anna was meticulous—she'd have notes. Emy was brilliant—she probably didn't even NEED notes. So why target me specifically?
Something wasn't right. Something was very, VERY wrong.
Whatever. I needed to move. I grabbed my bag and headed for the door, weaving through students who were already flooding into the hallway. Outside the classroom, I mentally ran through my options, trying to figure out where to hide next that wouldn't get me killed.
Okay, where should I—
[Mission in progress...
Objective: Death looms around the corner. Survive until tomorrow [00:17:34:32].
Reward: An affinity.
Failure: Death.
Respawn: 2/5]
DING.
[Death Evaded]
[Mission Complete]
"WHAT?!"
I stopped dead in the hallway, students flowing around me like water around a rock. My heart hammered against my ribs. Complete? Already? But I didn't DO anything except—
[Reward: Shadow affinity]
[Do you wish to exchange your weakened light affinity for a shadow affinity?]
[Yes] [No]
The system windows hovered in my vision, patient and impassive. Waiting for my decision. But my mind was stuck on something else entirely, something that made my blood run cold.
Hold on.
Does this mean Jayden was trying to kill me?
My notebook. He wanted my notebook. And every single time I gave it to him, I died shortly after. Every. Single. Time.
What the hell was IN that notebook that was worth killing for?