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Evacuation Point 1.
Most of the children were lying on makeshift beds, exhausted.
Pia moved quickly through the scattered bodies.
“Ugh, Instructor. Please look at my arm.”
“Fortunately, it’s not broken, just a simple dislocation. Hmm, anything to bite on?”
“…What?”
“Would you like a potion cap to bite on?”
“Yes? Ugh!”
Using the supplies stockpiled in the evacuation point, she skillfully provided the necessary treatment for the children.
Her skills were almost as good as a professional healer.
‘…We’re short-handed.’
Thanks to the protective artifacts, the children weren’t seriously injured, but there were many minor injuries and cases of exhaustion.
“Grrrr!”
It was the moment when she tightly bandaged Gerald’s arm wound.
Beep!
The communication artifact in her ear rang, and she headed towards the central tent.
[Pia]
[Yes, Professor]
[Any issues at the evacuation point?]
A brief report followed.
Following the instructions of the hero, Pia conducted an inspection of the children’s belongings.
Fortunately, even after a thorough search, there was no sign of any items that could be potential conduits.
It seemed like the monsters hadn’t touched the children.
Relieved, the hero who heard the story let out a sigh.
[All remaining monsters have been dealt with. However, it might take a bit longer to reach the evacuation point due to the train’s destruction. Have the five of them arrived?]
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Pia’s gaze shifted outside the tent.
Amidst the children waiting for treatment, cheerful voices were mixed in.
“…Hey, logically, where would such a snake be?”
“No, I’m telling you, there really was one! A huge snake appeared! So, Professor jumped up this high! Huh? You saw it too, right, Ban!”
“Uh, yeah. What Cuculli says is true.”
“Sigh, how much are you going to exaggerate the story for…”
“I told you not to!”
In the midst of the conversation, completely inappropriate for the situation, Pia found herself laughing involuntarily.
[Yes. They all arrived safely. They suffered some minor injuries, so we’re going to treat them.]
[Good. Support forces will arrive soon, so endure a little longer. After finishing the recovery of the control center, Yussi will join you shortly.]
[Understood. Don’t worry about the children’s care. We’ll do our best.]
[It’s reassuring. Then.]
Ending the communication, Pia wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead and surveyed the bustling evacuation point.
Initially, she considered evacuating the children outside the forest altogether, but she decided that the protected evacuation point would be safer.
Therefore, all thirty-one extreme students were here.
‘…Everyone seems determined.’
The exams were abruptly halted, and with the sudden body search, the children must be confused.
‘In times like these, as an adult, I need to provide stability.’
Of course, Pia was scared too.
Unlike the children, she knew exactly what had happened in the forest.
But the hero entrusted this place to her.
She couldn’t betray that trust.
Pia gathered medical supplies, including bandages, and turned back to the children.
“…Huh?”
Someone was entering the tent.
‘…Lucas Wellington?’
He arrived relatively late at the evacuation point.
Unlike his usual lively self, he was sitting in a corner without energy, causing concern.
Pia smiled and said.
“Mr. Wellington, you shouldn’t come into this tent. If you’re feeling unwell, should I take a look outside?”
“Oh, it’s not that….”
His gaze, which had been wandering for a moment, settled on the alarm device inside the tent—more precisely, the alarm device connected to the control center.
“It seems the professor is a bit late?”
“Huh?”
“I’m so anxious, so I was wondering when the professor would come.”
“Oh, the professor is…”
She was about to answer the question absentmindedly.
Pia stopped speaking, feeling a strange sensation.
“…Instructor?”
Soon, their eyes met.
Pia had been observing and caring for each child since the beginning of the semester.
‘Different….’
Lucas was undoubtedly an arrogant and confident young man.
But he also had the impetuosity and awkwardness typical of his age.
…Except for that.
The chilling and ruthless aura emanating from him was different.
Collaborator?
No.
That was something else.
A warning bell echoed in her mind.
Her hand reflexively reached for the communication device.
Before Pia could do anything, Lucas—or rather, the possessed Enoch—was a step ahead.
Crack!
His outstretched fist shattered the communication device hanging near Pia’s ear.
Momentarily losing balance, she tumbled to the ground amid the broken pieces.
Her right ear felt like it was burning.
“Ugh.”
But Pia didn’t give up.
She quickly got up and ran towards the side with the alarm device.
‘I have to inform them! I have to inform!’
The control center is where the Principal is.
If the alarm goes off, she can relay the evacuation status to the professor.
‘Ah, no!’
But even that was thwarted.
A hand squeezing her ankle tightly.
She struggled, but it was in vain.
Thud!
The pain of her body hitting the ground echoed, crushed under the weight of the beating.
“Keh, who are you!”
No answer.
Just an increasing pressure on her ankle.
The abnormal strength made her bones ache as if they would crumble.
Beep beep beep beep beep!
At that moment, the alarm device rang.
“Huh?”
“…What?”
Pia and Enoch stopped simultaneously.
It wasn’t a hallucination.
The untimely alarm disrupted the peace outside the tent.
With trembling eyes, Pia stared straight ahead.
“….”
When did she enter the tent?
Black hair lightly fell on her shoulders, swaying in the air.
…Nyhill.
Her small hand was precisely on the button of the alarm device.
“…Ha.”
Finally, a big smile appeared on Enoch’s expressionless face like a wax doll.
The moment he intended to quietly suppress the communication network and leisurely consume the children, the plan was distorted.
Given the circumstances, there was no choice.
He said as if spitting out.
“You have the expression of thinking you’ve won.”
The moment his words ended, Pia couldn’t resist the overwhelming drowsiness and collapsed to the ground.
After a while, Nyhill also staggered and soon kneeled.
A sinister magic spread from the hand he clenched.
‘Professor….’
A thud!
The sound of footsteps leaving the tent.
“…You will regret it in the endless nightmare.”
Beep-beep-beep-
Following that, simultaneous alarms from the magic measuring devices echoed.
That was their last memory.
* * *
Ban resisted abnormal drowsiness and walked forward.
It felt like forcibly getting up right before falling asleep after staying up for several nights.
Eyelids were heavy as if someone was pulling them down, and the vision was blurry, if not pitch dark.
‘I must not fall asleep….’
Suddenly, the alarm went off.
The whirlwind of demonic energy burst out of the tent, sweeping through the evacuation point.
Unsure of the situation, it seemed clear that closing her eyes now would not be a good idea.
“…Gerald! Karen! Wake up!”
But most of his fellow students were already sprawled on the floor.
Depleted in mana and physical strength, they had no ability to resist.
Even those standing seemed precarious, as if they could collapse at any moment.
Beep beep beep-
The alarm from the magic measuring device became increasingly loud.
Swish-
A cascade of red hair fell in front of his hazy eyes.
‘…Leciel!’
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Just as he reached out to support her, a desperate voice calling him urgently came from behind.
“Ban! Run away!”
“…Cuculli?”
Turning around, there. Fierce-looking Cuculli was rYussing towards Lucas.
No, was that really Lucas?
Meeting the dry gaze, Ban was enveloped in an intense sense of unease.
Clang!
Cuculli’s whip-like sword swung towards Lucas.
Perhaps due to significantly higher magical power than her peers, she seemed less affected by drowsiness.
But Lucas appeared even more unaffected.
No, he was stronger and faster than usual.
Cuculli, with a stern expression, was quickly knocked back and fell.
“Persistent dragon bitch.”
Annoyed, Lucas stepped on Cuculli’s writhing fingers.
He then rushed towards Ban.
Swish-
Ban hastily took a defensive stance, preparing for the incoming attack.
However, in his current standing state, not to mention counter attacking, he couldn’t even evade or defend.
“Kugh.”
Taking a blow to the abdomen, Ban crumpled to the ground.
Beyond the blurry vision.
Incomprehensible words were poured out.
“It’s been a while.”
“A… while?”
“You must know me.”
Squelch!
Stepping on Ban’s throat, Enoch looked down at him.
The alarm was ringing, and time was running out.
Ban’s presence was inevitable.
Breaking through the guy’s mental barrier would be easier than biting the wrist of a child.
HEL SCANS
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The boy’s biggest weaknesses were fear, trauma, defense mechanisms, and psychological trauma—all created by himself ten years ago.
‘It will end smoothly.’
After consuming this high-quality prey, he would use the amplified power to engulf the minds of other children.
Like dominoes.
It wouldn’t take long to consume them all.
Enoch’s hand reached out.
“Shh… Let’s have a long dream.”
* * *
The communication device rang incessantly.
It was Felson, who had gone to capture the host of Monma.
[Enoch. The leader of the Monma legion was Enoch! Damn, how is he alive?]
A desperate voice.
Before the shock could subside, Yussi’s report came from the evacuation point, where the alarm had just sounded.
[After the alarm, the contact with Pia was lost. The visual recording beads of the shelter are also offline…]
As the words pierced the ears, a sense of urgency felt like a stab to the heart.
Monma Legion Leader.
Moreover, Enoch, thought to have been subdued ten years ago.
A much larger threat than anticipated.
One couldn’t afford to be flustered at a time like this. R
egaining control was essential now.
In the face of an imminent crisis, cold judgment was necessary.
Acting hastily to escape immediate anxiety and fear could lead to irreversible consequences.
I ran towards the shelter and tried to assess the situation. [
Felson. Did you find out any other information by interrogating the collaborators?]
[…The conduit. Eitrobin revealed the identity of the conduit.]
[What was the conduit?]
The conduits usually used by demons to corrupt humans and enhance their powers included objects like ritual daggers used in demon worship, swords used in civilian massacres, items exposed to magic for a long time, etc.
Destroying such conduits could lower Enoch’s influence.
With that expectation, I asked.
However…
[…They developed an entirely new type of conduit.]
[What was the conduit?]
[Alcohol, they said.]
[Alcohol?]
Felson succinctly summarized the situation and conveyed it.
Given his son’s perilous situation, it was an extraordinarily patient response.
[It was called the “Dream Droplet,” a conduit. It seems they secretly distributed it from nearby villages.]
[Ah…]
Yussi, who was listening, let out a low sigh.
‘So, that’s why Control Center employees were easily deceived.’
The users had freedom of movement within the academy.
Hence, they often spent their breaks at nearby facilities such as taverns.
‘Jeremy Eitrobin being a businessman probably played a role too.’
He became a wealthy entrepreneur in the mining industry.
With various connections to the upper echelons and even directly operating among the upper echelons.
Playing pranks on items being circulated wouldn’t have been too difficult.
I recalled the report on the ‘Nubes Salon Incident’ I had read before.
Investigation Results: Failure to identify the hallucination conduit.
[Right. Nubes Salon… It was probably related to this damn droplet, or whatever it was, even with my wife’s death. And now my son is in danger.]
Felson’s voice began to tremble.
It seemed his immense patience had reached its limit.
[Leader, how long do you think it will take to reach where the children are? Enoch can not only deceive but also ‘possess.’ The power of dreams he unfolds in that state is different from other Monmas. We’re in a hurry!]
…How long would it take to reach the shelter?
The magic train had been destroyed, and I was running.
Moreover, the forest was not a flat terrain. It had many hills, and the dense trees made running difficult.
Monsters kept coming.
Even if we ran with all our might, it would still take considerable time.
‘Clearly, it won’t work like this.’
So, I stopped running.
[…Sir Hero?]
Yussi’s puzzled voice echoed in my ears, but there was no time to explain.
Checking with the Astera Vision, I found that the ‘last safety measure’ I had prepared was gradually approaching.
Ta-aang!
I fired a signal flare into the sky.
And then…
‘It’ appeared.
Drumroll!
The low hum of the magic engine resonated.
As the sound grew louder, the shadow on the ground rapidly increased in size.
Shielding my eyes from the dust and leaves swirling in the strong wind, I looked up at ‘it.’
‘Well… it’s not very impressive.’
Its angular and awkward body was cramped enough for only two people to barely sit in the cockpit, including the pilot’s seat.
Long wings rotating like crazy on both sides of the fuselage.
Rotors (rotating machines) attached underneath, spinning in opposite directions, keeping the craft afloat in the air.
I didn’t know how it operated, but it was, in essence, the first-ever invention in human history…
‘A machine that can fly in the sky.’
It was still in the early stages of invention, and long-distance flights were impossible.
But it would be more than enough to reach where the children were.
Yussi, who had been watching through the vision bead, screamed sharply.
[No, not that! My…]
Unfortunately, her voice was buried under the roar of the engine and the furious yell coming from the angry dwarf popping out of the cockpit.
His face, usually stern, was darkened by concern for someone.
“Leader! Get on quickly!”
His goggle-like eyepieces sparkled brightly, reflecting the sunlight.
I climbed onto the floor, checking the items stored in the cargo compartment.
Then, I addressed the communicator.
[Felson.]
[…Leader.]
A desperate voice responded.
It seemed like a desperate situation.
But there was a solution.
If he were another Monma Leader, there would be no chance.
But he was Enoch, a Monma close to a spiritual entity.
I spoke calmly, as always.
[I’ll find a way to rescue them.]
Through the communicator, the anxious breaths gradually subsided.
* * *
Ban opened his eyes.
Shoo-oo-oo-oo-!
Rain poured over the lake.
It was such a heavy rain that the sight seemed to warp and shake.
Standing there, the boy faced the faint boundary where the white sky and the surface of the lake merged.
Squuueek-!
On a creaky wooden board, swaying in the strong rainstorm, the erased letters were barely visible:
Prave Fishing Spot.
Ban closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
Yes, this was the place.
Where he had stabbed his mother.
[TL/N: ….The big reveal]
[PR/N: HOLY SHIT. yeah now i get why he couldn’t fight with swords and his trauma, this is too much damn.]
HEL SCANS
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