Inside the Academy's training hall, twelve people were gathered, including Luminelle and Tania. Having spent the entire day confined within the facility for their rigorous practice, they were completely oblivious to the duel occurring between Shion and Cassius.
Each group was focused on their respective drills, but Tania, who was exceptionally sensitive to fluctuations in the surrounding mana, suddenly approached Luminelle.
"Lady Luminelle."
"What is it, Lady Tania?"
"Do you feel it too? The flow of mana in this area... it seems disturbed."
"It seems I am not the alone. Indeed, I feel a massive amount of magical energy raging wildly outside."
"Shall we go check it together?"
"Certainly."
After informing the others of the situation, the two of them hurried toward the exit. But just as they reached for the door—
!!
A crushing pressure slammed into them. While it wasn't enough to paralyze them, it was heavy enough to make their lungs seize.
"Hahh... Hahh... This pressure..." Tania gasped, her breath coming in ragged pants.
"Fiuhh... We must hurry, Tania!"
Tania nodded, and they sprinted toward the source of the energy.
"Kyahhh!!!" "Run! Get out of here!" "What is actually happening!?"
Along the way, they saw students fleeing in a state of sheer panic.
"We need to move faster."
They pushed their bodies to the limit.
!!
"T-that's...!"
When they finally arrived at the arena, they froze in shock. A mysterious force field blocked the entrance, preventing anyone from stepping inside. But the most horrifying sight was above: a quarter of the sun, which had been shining brightly moments ago, was now obscured by a creeping black mass. The sky, once blue, had turned a deep, visceral shade of crimson, like fresh blood.
[Elle, be careful. Even I cannot guarantee our safety if we rush in recklessly.]
!!
Even Nyx, who usually looked lethargic, now wore an expression of grim seriousness.
[Moreover, for some reason, this power... feels familiar.]
Gulp.
"Just what on earth is happening..."
Despite their burning curiosity, the overwhelming dread kept them rooted to the spot.
...
"—I will be the one to stop you."
The center of the arena was eerily silent. I stared down at Cassius, whose face had gone deathly pale.
I glanced around briefly at the main characters lying unconscious. Even so, seeing Leon nearly awaken his true power when his life was threatened was quite satisfying. To be honest, I hadn't expected things to escalate this far.
Cassius Halvorn... he was destined to be one of the bosses in the game, but he wasn't supposed to fight the protagonist until much later. Yet here he was, awakening early with Stormbringer as the catalyst.
An SSS-rank weapon is different from ordinary gear; it chooses its own master, or requires someone strong enough to force it into submission. If you aren't strong enough to dominate it, it will dominate you.
"Stop me, you say?"
Cassius stood up once more. His eyes no longer showed fear—only a hollow, jagged madness.
"Look at yourself, Cassius. You've been completely swallowed by—"
"Shut up!!"
"How dare you! All of this happened because of you, you bastard!! A commoner like you... daring to oppose me!!"
Cassius lunged forward.
Clang—!
(A deafening metallic crash rang out, accompanied by the sound of the earth spider-webbing beneath Cassius's feet as he forced his entire weight forward with unnatural strength.)
I parried the blow and shoved him back. His body was thrown several meters, yet in a grotesque display of physics, he snapped back to a standing position before the momentum of my push had even faded.
"Haa... Hahaha...!"
Cassius laughed, but it wasn't a human sound. His eyes had turned entirely white, the pupils gone. Fresh blood poured from his nose and the beds of his fingernails, which were peeling away from gripping his sword too hard. He didn't flinch.
He no longer cared if his body fell apart.
Cassius charged again, this time with speed that transcended human limits, ignoring the audible cracks of his own leg bones every time he struck the ground.
Wosh—!
Clang! Clang!
The sound of blind, savage sword strikes followed, sounding like a rhythmic assault of a giant sledgehammer with no pause for breath.
I continued to hold his attacks at bay. Every impact sent stinging jolts of electricity through me, but I didn't budge from my position. Cassius kept attacking, even as his arm muscles began to bulge and tear through his skin from the sheer pressure of the mana. He had truly become a puppet controlled by his own rage and the artifact.
Finally, his body emitted a horrifying 'crack'. His joints were no longer where they were supposed to be, yet he still stood upright before me, trembling with overflowing energy.
I looked at him coldly.
"Your body has reached its limit, Cassius. Stop now and accept your punishment."
Cassius didn't answer with words. Instead, he grinned widely, the corners of his mouth tearing further. To him, pain no longer existed; only the desire to destroy remained.
"Die... Die... DIE!!!"
He raised Stormbringer high. A dense red light and black lightning began to shroud the blade, sucking in all the magical energy around the arena until the air felt vacuum-thin.
A massive bolt of lightning struck from the sky directly into the tip of Cassius's sword, creating a thunderous roar so powerful that the glass windows of the surrounding buildings shattered into a thousand pieces.
"Die!!"
Cassius swung his sword down, releasing a massive disc-shaped wave of energy that split the arena floor and emitted a blinding light.
"Danger!!" "Get out of the way!!!"
I heard Ragna and Lysandra screaming at me to dodge, but instead, I closed my eyes.
Sigh.
A short, weary exhale escaped my lips.
As the blade energy launched by Cassius was about to reach me, I raised my sword and channeled my mana. I slowly opened my eyes and whispered:
"First Technique: Twilight Severance."
I swung my mana-coated blade downward.
Shing—!
A straight red line formed. The energy wave launched by Cassius shattered into pieces, and simultaneously—
Slice.
"Ehhh?"
A small, confused sound escaped Cassius. He looked toward his shoulder and saw his arm—still clutching Stormbringer—detaching from his body.
Thud. Clang.
"AAAHHHKKKK!!"
A scream of pure agony erupted. With the loss of Stormbringer, it seemed Cassius's sanity had finally returned.
"He-help me!! My arm!!"
The shattered arena floor was now mixed with a spreading pool of blood.
"Cassius."
!!
I called his name. When he looked at me, his eyes vibrated with sheer terror.
"This is your last chance, Cassius."
"I-I—"
At that moment—
!!
Cassius's severed hand suddenly moved on its own. Before I could stop it—
Shing—!
"Eh..."
With that soft gasp, Cassius's head fell from his shoulders.
I, Lysandra, and Ragna all stood there, stunned by the sight.
"Cassius..." "Dammit!"
'How could that hand still move?'
I approached the severed hand and picked it up. On the skin was a skull symbol—a mark belonging to criminals who joined a specific organization.
"Those bastards."
I ignored the blood and gritted my teeth. I never expected them to show up this early.
'But what is their goal? Wait, could it be—'
My suspicion was correct. Stormbringer, which had been lying next to the severed hand, suddenly vibrated. Beside it, a portal tore open. A figure in a black robe stepped out.
"My, my. I didn't expect to be greeted with such a grand spectacle."
"You... what are—"
"Wait, Instructor."
I immediately stopped Ragna, who was about to rush forward. The person in front of me was no ordinary foe.
'He's strong.'
Just from the pressure he exerted, I knew he was on another level.
'System.'
I ordered the system to scan him, but—
[Error!] [Unable to scan!]
!!
'Error?'
While I was reeling from the system's failure, the man spoke again.
"No need to be so guarded. I have no intention of fighting today."
He leaned down to pick up Stormbringer.
"I only came for this. It's a shame this boy couldn't control its power and died like this."
"Stop the act, you bastard. I know this was all your plan."
"You truly are an impatient one. But unfortunately, my business here is done."
Whooosh—
Another portal opened, and the man stepped inside.
"Well then, everyone, I shall take my leave for now."
With that, the man vanished along with the portal, leaving us in a heavy silence. Ragna was the one to break it.
"Student Shion... thank you for stopping me earlier. I was consumed by my emotions and almost led us into another fight."
"It's fine, Instructor. But do you know who that was?" I asked, feigning ignorance.
"...They are the worshippers of the Evil God."
!!
"You mean those heretics?"
"Yes. They are the bastards who will do anything to resurrect the Dark Deity. But I never imagined they could infiltrate this academy."
"Indeed, I am shocked as well. But what was their true purpose in causing chaos here?" Lysandra asked.
Ragna looked at Lysandra and me alternately, finally sighing as he spoke.
"Well... in the future, you will eventually find out. But this is just my guess. Their target here might be him."
Ragna pointed toward Leon.
"Prince Leon."
"Yes. A Light affinity is the rarest because it is the primary enemy of the Darkness affinity."
"So!?"
"Yes. In other words, Prince Leon is the key enemy to fight them. Of course, there are others with Light affinities, but the Prince's is different."
Indeed. While the Saints and Paladins of the Holy Kingdom have to pray to the Goddess for a blessing of light, Leon was born with the ability to use it naturally.
"And more importantly... Student Shion."
Ragna's intimidating gaze shifted toward me, carrying a sharp, murderous intent.
"Just who are you?"
I hadn't expected the secret I was keeping to be exposed this quickly. But it was fortunate that only these two knew—no, the moment I showed even a fraction of the 'Eclipse' power, Lysandra surely realized my true identity.
"Instructor Ragna, I apologize, but I cannot reveal my identity to you. However... one thing I can guarantee is that I have no intention of endangering this academy."
"Ah, I have also received permission from the Headmaster, so you can ask him yourself."
Ragna's gaze softened slightly at my answer, though suspicion still lingered in his eyes.
"Also... I would like to ask you both to keep quiet about this, if possible."
"Why?"
"Well, it would be a hassle if others found out, so..."
I exerted a slight pressure on them as I finished.
"Please."