Chapter 112

  this is a fictional story by realTensai

  Alvis dashed out of the library, his feet moving on their own. The thought that Charles had manipulated every major event in this survival game made an icy shudder run down his spine. How much more did he do without Alvis knowing? The more Alvis thought about it, the more fearsome did Charles become.

  Yet he wouldn’t let him have his way this time.

  Alvis boosted his speed by letting his mana circulate through his body. He was almost there. Even though he wasn’t sure if he could de-escalate the situation without Mr. Woltzer and the other teachers, he still ran. He had no other choice.

  If he didn’t make it, nothing would change.

  Pain-filled battle cries that carried the stench of blood rang through the air, making Alvis’ hair stand up, and as he took the corner, the carnage presented itself. An overwhelming number of students consumed by hatred attacked each other. Spells designed to kill clashed with magical tools with the same purpose, creating an onslaught so fierce many students already lay crippled on the ground. Lyon, Dagon, and Bero tried their best to calm them down, but it was already too late.

  But not for Alvis.

  “Stop!” His mana-enforced voice echoed throughout the battlefield, gaining him everyone’s attention if even only for a split second. But that was all he needed. “Mr. Woltzer will appear soon and everyone he sees fighting will face severe punishments.”

  A bold threat. The students stopped, the shouting and crying subduing.

  Yet it only lasted for a moment.

  “We’ll never let injustice prevail!” a demon shouted, catalyzing the hatred in their heart.

  They roared in unison, and the fight continued with rekindled vigor. Alvis couldn’t even click his tongue as the same thing happened last time. His eyes scanned their twisted faces, despair led by rage and hatred dancing within their minds. This fight represented what was in their hearts and wasn’t something Alvis could influence with a simple threat.

  He had to use force.

  “Seismic Lockdown.”

  The earth shook with an unnatural power, making even the air itself feel heavy. The gravity increased, creating spider-webbed cracks on the ground, inviting the students to take a seat. Their legs buckled, and everyone fell.

  “I--- I can’t move!” A student said, his face kissing the earth. “What have you done?”

  They started shouting and cursing, yet it wouldn’t change their situation. Alvis just stared at them, his eyes unmoved by the world, his mana like a deep ocean, and his brain like a master sailor able to subject its might for his benefit.

  This was the power Hibea had shown him. It was his true potential.

  Alvis had underestimated his human brain and thought the only advantage he had was that he could learn spells faster and cast them more effectively. This couldn’t have been farther from the truth. Hibea destroyed the shackles he had put on himself unknowingly and unlocked what was sleeping within him. A bittersweet feeling spread in his mouth as he had paid for this awakening with his humanity.

  “This won’t be enough to stop us,” a human shouted, his resilience helping him to stand up. His knees shook like a newborn lamb, but he was standing. Some other students, demons, and humans, followed his lead, wanting to continue fighting no matter what. Alvis could feel the mana density around some of them increasing as they prepared deadly spells. He could even see some beam cannons lighting up, one of their wielders being Max, the human who got killed as a consequence of him almost killing a demon. As a consequence of the action, he was about to do.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  “I won’t let the same thing happen twice,” Alvis muttered, his mana already moving. “Lightning Chains.”

  Golden chains of electricity arrested those who still acted up. They fell once again, this time even losing their consciousness. Alvis had lowered the lightning’s intensity, not wanting to kill them, yet it was enough to make them sleep.

  Still, Max had his fingers on the trigger.

  A mighty beam shot raced through the air and was aimed straight at a demon. The demon couldn’t even gasp as the beam shot was so close his eyes already reflected it.

  “Earth wall.”

  A solid earthen wall rose right before the demon and clashed with the beam shot. It exploded into thousands of small splinters, but it had fulfilled its duty. It stopped the beam shot.

  “I won’t let anyone die under my watch,” Alvis said, exhaling, his cold breath like a testament to his resolve.

  His insurmountable prowess cracked their will to fight. And in the same moment, he appeared.

  “You did a great job, Alvis Silva.”

  A deep and powerful voice resounded throughout the battlefield, and everyone who went to this school knew who it belonged to. Alvis couldn’t help but smile; the two days in which he hadn’t heard his voice had felt like a nightmare.

  “Mr. Woltzer!”

  “Medic team, prioritize the injured,” Mr. Woltzer commanded, immediately taking control. “Combat instructors, take custody of the students still wanting to fight.”

  From there on, everything happened similarly to last time. Alvis undid his gravity spell and just watched the scene. No, this time, he only watched Mr. Woltzer.

  Mr. Woltzer looked over the battlefield with eyes as cold as stone. His usual energy had long vanished, yet his expressionless face made Alvis’ inside twist. Last time, Alvis didn’t know that Mr. Woltzer had been at a similar fight right before this one. But still, a principal, no, Mr. Woltzer wouldn’t let despair control him because of this.

  Or would he?

  “B-Boss!”

  Three voices forced Alvis out of his thoughts, yet they triggered an immediate smile.

  “Lyon, Dagon, Bero.”

  His three students were covered in minor injuries, but their clothes weren’t soaked in blood. Lyon didn’t have a deep scar on his forehead, and Dagon’s arms weren’t broken.

  “We’re sorry. We couldn’t stop them. If it wasn’t for you… so many people would’ve died.”

  “You tried your best, and that’s all that matters.”

  “Good words you said there, Alvis Silva.”

  Just like last time, Mr. Woltzer confronted them, his mighty paw on Alvis’ shoulders. Their eyes met, but all Alvis saw were lifeless marbles.

  “Tell me what happened.”

  Bero explained the situation and how it escalated so much, and all Mr. Woltzer did was listen.

  “Is this all?” Mr. Woltzer asked as soon as Bero finished. His voice was steady, yet disturbingly hollow.

  “Yes,” Bero answered, upon which Mr. Woltzer stared at the ground.

  Alvis enhanced his senses, focusing everything he had on the man before him.

  “My announcement amounted to nothing... Was the path I chose wrong after all? Is there really no way we can understand each other?”

  It was with these words leaving his mouth that the last life in his eyes did too. All that was left was a man who gave up on his dream.

  Alvis choked on his breath, his worst assumptions turning into reality.

  He gave up on us!

  There was no mistake, these eyes belonged to someone who didn’t care anymore. The Alvis last time had tried to deny it as it didn’t make sense, but the Alvis this time knew what would happen that night. Mr. Woltzer would vanish, and with him, the last thread of control.

  Alvis clenched his fist, his heartbeat suddenly skyrocketing as he realized that they had already reached the turning point. Even though he prevented someone from dying, he couldn’t restore Mr. Woltzer’s hope. They were at the same spot as in the last loop.

  Nothing changed!

  Visions of the catastrophe that awaited them haunted Alvis again, making his hand tremble. At the same time, his brain processed the consequences of Mr. Woltzer’s change even more. A sole question popped up in this process.

  Wait, how did Mr. Woltzer vanish in the first place?

  From one day to the next, he had just been gone and no one could find him. Alvis didn’t know of a place in this school where he could’ve hidden without the teachers finding him eventually. Someone disappearing in this game, at this time, could only mean one thing.

  The Priest’s voice echoed in Alvis’ ears, listing the rewards for the first kill.

  Alvis looked at Mr. Woltzer.

  Their eyes met.

  And every cell in Alvis’ body rebelled as his brain gave him the sole solution.

  No.

  It can’t be...

  But it is!

  Mr. Woltzer was the one who killed first.