Chapter 113

  this is a fictional story by realTensai

  Alvis waved goodbye to the three first years as they went to the dorms, an artificial smile on his face. As soon as they entered, his smile faded away. The barrier’s crushing shadow loomed over him as he stood there in the dark, processing what he had just found out.

  Mr. Woltzer was the one who killed first.

  It was the sole explanation for his disappearance. After trying his best to give them hope, after trying his best to support them, the students still fought each other, willing to kill their fellow schoolmates. Seeing that, Mr. Woltzer gave up and abandoned them. This was the theory Alvis came up with.

  Still, why did the demon student vanish too in the last loop?

  Alvis immediately found an answer. If Mr. Woltzer had teamed up with this student, both of them would vanish, and no one could know which of them killed.

  How favorable for you.

  Alvis clenched his fist, suppressing the negative feelings building up within him. It didn’t matter if Mr. Woltzer gave up hope; he was still their principal! He killed a student and gave the starting signal for chaos to break out just because of his selfish feelings. Were all his speeches of morality just for show?

  Alvis had to hear the answer from Mr. Woltzer himself. His eyes burned with resolve, his mana fueling his determination.

  I won’t let you run away, Mr. Woltzer.

  Alvis’ mind was set. He would monitor Mr. Woltzer for the entire night and stop him from committing murder. The gears in his mind started turning as a plan manifested in his head.

  But what if it was the demon student who killed Max?

  Alvis couldn’t know for sure because this student had vanished too. However, he wouldn’t have to worry about him today. Alvis had stopped Max from injuring the guy whose best friend was the demon who had vanished. His motive for killing Max had been that Max almost killed his best friend. Yet this didn’t happen in this run, so he had no reason to commit the crime.

  A deep breath escaped Alvis’ mouth as he realized that he could fully focus on Mr. Woltzer.

  “Let’s do this.”

  ------------------

  The night had come and Alvis was navigating through the main building, his steps as quiet as a ghost. All he could hear was a teacher patrolling whilst everyone else was either sleeping in the dorms or in their classrooms. If someone would catch him right now whilst the curfew had already begun, he would get into big trouble.

  Alvis had told Ms. Myth that he would sleep in the dorms in Chao’s room and told Chao that if Ms. Myth came to look if he was there, he could just tell her he went to the toilet. Chao agreed, yet he had asked what Alvis wanted to do. He replied by saying he had to do some investigations he could only do in the night. And this was what he was doing right now.

  Even his breathing couldn’t be heard, as he had already mastered the skill called stalking. How come I have to pull a stunt like this in almost every loop? Alvis wondered.

  He used his mind protector skill and suppressed his presence even further, making it almost impossible for the patrolling teacher to spot him. Alvis arrived on the second floor and his eyes were set on the Principal’s office. He settled in a corner from which he could still see it, but Mr. Woltzer wouldn’t see him if he were to come out. He positioned himself in a way he could still escape if the patrolling teacher were to approach his hiding spot. With all these measures taken, he leaned against the wall and waited.

  Might as well check my system.

  ═══════════════════

  SYSTEM MENU

  Level 4: War of Races

  Mission: Win

  Respawns: 2

  [Stats]

  HP: 300 MP: 450

  STR: 20 AGI: 30

  INT: 35 SENSE: 19

  Ability Points: 3

  Coins: 400

  [Survival Skills 5/7]

  ? Evasion Lvl. 6 (Passive)

  ? Mind Shield Lvl. 2→ 5 (Passive)

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  ? Advanced Mana Manipulation Lvl. 9→ Master Mana Manipulation Lvl. 4 (Active)

  ? Assassin’s Eye Lvl. 7 (Active)

  ? Game Master Lvl. 12 (Active)

  [Inventory] Empty

  [Shop] Click to Open

  [Daily Quest] Survive — no rewards

  ═══════════════════

  Alvis’ eyes widened, as there were several things that caught his attention. First of all, his system was still in its survival game mode. It had been configured after he had completed his first quest, but it seemed like it stayed that way even though he respawned.

  The second thing was that his Mind Shield skill and his Advanced Mana Manipulation skill had leveled up quite a lot. After going through so many traumatising events in his last run, it made sense for his Mind Shield skill to level up. It was a passive skill and led first and foremost to him being immune to mind spells, but also to a calmer mind. Now that he thought about it, he had adjusted surprisingly fast after respawning from such a horrific run.

  However, seeing his Advanced Mana Manipulation taking such a massive leap made him almost smile, even in his current situation. It was now called Master Mana Manipulation and was at Lvl. 4. Alvis linked this increase to the influence Hibea had on him. If it was called Master Mana Manipulation, he probably was on the same level as a master-ranked mage.

  No, probably even stronger.

  Most master-ranked mages specialized in one category. For example, Ms. Myth was a master-ranked fire mage. However, Alvis could manipulate every element and even combine them to create deviants, making him far more lethal. And he would only increase in strength as time went on.

  Still, an ominous feeling didn’t let him enjoy his progress as he saw that he only had two respawns left. He had pushed this thought away, yet this level was unlike any before. If he continued failing, he would soon enter his last life state and if he died after that, the Devil would take over. All this strength he accumulated would be used by the one aiming to subject the world.

  I can’t fail, no matter what.

  The creaking noise of a door opening forced Alvis out of his thoughts. Mr. Woltzer stepped out of the Principal’s office. Alvis’ heartbeat drummed out every other sound. His mind raced.

  It’s happening. It’s happening!

  Alvis stopped breathing, afraid of his heartbeat being so loud that Mr. Woltzer might hear it. Mr. Woltzer turned his head, overlooking the area, his eyes as dark as the bottom of an ocean. He saw no one and started walking.

  Of course, the patrolling teacher isn’t here right now. Alvis cursed in his head.

  But maybe Mr. Woltzer left his room precisely because he knew the teacher wasn’t there. Mr. Woltzer stood before the elevator and Alvis just clicked his tongue. He overlooked the area once more before entering it. Alvis focussed his eyes on the button Mr. Woltzer was about to click and caught his destination.

  The basement!

  The elevator doors closed and Alvis immediately sprinted to the stairs. If he went at full speed, he might catch up to the elevator just in time. But as soon as he took the corner and wanted to jump down the stairs, the patrolling teacher stood before him.

  Alvis froze.

  “What are you doing here at this time?” the older dwarven teacher asked in an authoritative tone. His eyes hinted at confusion, but his stern gaze made it clear that he demanded an answer. And if he didn’t like Alvis’ explanation, consequences would follow.

  Alvis could hardly breathe as a thousand thoughts assaulted his mind.

  Shit! Why now? Why did he have to come in the worst possible moment? What should I do? What should I do? Should I tell him I was just going to the toilet? No, he would only accompany me to it and bring me back to my room. Should I tell him the truth? Should I tell him that Mr. Woltzer is about to commit a murder? No, he would never believe me. He would ask me how I came to that conclusion and explaining everything would take too much time. Time! I don’t have time!

  Alvis raised his hand, mana dancing in his palm, morphing into a current of lightning. The dwarven teacher’s eyes widened, but it was already too late. The tiny lightning bolt struck him. His body trembled and his knees buckled as he lost consciousness. Alvis caught him before he fell down the stairs and placed him on the ground. He gritted his teeth, the consequences of his action playing out in his mind, but no matter how severe they might be, they wouldn’t be as bad as Mr. Woltzer disappearing now.

  Alvis rushed down the stairs, his mana circulating through his body.

  Within seconds, he arrived in the basement. Still, he didn’t know if he was too late. His gaze wandered from left to right, trying to catch Mr. Woltzer and he did. Mr. Woltzer had already walked deep into the dark, labyrinth-like basement. Alvis suppressed his aura even more and, without hesitating any further, he followed.

  Mr. Woltzer navigated through the basement, every step he took purposeful. The stone walls carried his footsteps and the deeper they went, the more corners they had to take. It got darker with every step, yet the turns and paths increased as if wanting to trap them in this endless maze. Alvis remembered that this school used to be a castle, so he wouldn’t be surprised if there were hidden passages enemies shouldn’t know about.

  But the more he thought about it, the less did Mr. Woltzer’s behavior make sense. If he wanted to kill someone, why would he go deep into the basement where no one was at?

  Mr. Woltzer stopped.

  He faced a wall, all these turns leading him to a dead end. Alvis’ heart stopped beating, as this meant he would have to turn around. But if he did that, he would see Alvis!

  Yet he didn’t. Mr. Woltzer kept on staring at the wall as if searching for something. Suddenly, he raised his hand and placed it against one of the hundreds of stones forming the wall. Alvis could hear him whisper something, but couldn’t understand what he said. However, as soon as those words left his mouth, he pressed against the stone and the stones on the wall started moving. They rearranged themselves as if someone had breathed life into them and opened a secret path. Alvis could see stairs leading even deeper down and he knew that this was Mr. Woltzer’s destination.

  Mr. Woltzer went down the stairs and Alvis followed. His brain rebelled, telling him that there was no way back if he entered, yet Alvis had already steeled his resolve. He never intended to back down. Even if he had to fight Mr. Woltzer.

  Alvis descended the stairs on tiptoes, careful not to make a sound. The deeper they went in the brighter it became, making it obvious that some sort of source of illumination awaited them at the end. Mr. Woltzer reached the end of the stairs and entered into a room. Alvis took a few more steps down and took a glance. However, he couldn’t trust his eyes.

  The room Mr. Woltzer had walked into had countless holograms displayed on its walls. These holograms showed the school grounds, the buildings, the dorms, the rooms, and everything that was within this school. Alvis could see students sleeping in their beds, he could see some crying whilst others were polishing their weapons. His brain couldn’t adjust to this flood of information, but this wasn’t even all. The room was packed with food and water, enough to provide for weeks, if not months.

  Don’t tell me Mr. Woltzer hid here whilst everyone else was fighting for their survival? So he didn’t kill anyone. He just hid. Let the rest of us die while he sat in comfort. That’s just as damning. He---

  A sharp pain tore through Alvis’ chest.

  His legs gave out.

  His mouth opened like a floodgate, blood leaving it like an explosion.

  He staggered back, trembling, and looked down at the source of his pain.

  A blade. In his solar plexus.

  Alvis turned around and, as he saw the one who had struck him from behind, his eyes widened in horror.

  He hadn’t seen that face in a long time.