The second layer of the Academy Dungeon.
The shattered temple stood in silent, eternal gloom like bones trampled by a giant.
Deep claw marks and dense patterns left behind by shattered ice crystals covered the crumbling walls, silently telling the tale of the fierce battle that had taken place not long ago.
In the center of this ruined battlefield, a pitch-black cat squatted beside a pile of rubble.
It pawed at the dirt beneath its feet with focused, meticulous movements, sending dust flying with soft rustling sounds.
Before long, it dug an irregularly shaped dark red stone tablet out from beneath the dirt.
The black cat leaned close to the tablet and sniffed it gently with its nose.
It remained still in this posture for a moment before raising its head, its amber slit pupils gleaming deeply in the gloom.
"Although it carries Her scent as well, it isn't as strong as what I smelled on Greg. In other words, he didn't catch her scent from this stone tablet..."
It looked around at the ruined surroundings.
"...Which means She really came here once?"
Nightmare stepped forward with elegant, steady strides, walking up to the completely destroyed humanoid stone statue.
The upper half of the statue was thoroughly shattered, leaving only the remains below the waist to barely preserve its original outline.
Nightmare sat down before the remnants of the statue, her tail curling gently around her front paws, her amber slit pupils staring at the broken form.
"Since You had the ability to come here and even made contact with my other half..."
She tilted her head slightly, as if pondering an inexplicable puzzle:
"Then why—why didn't You kill us?"
Silence.
Only the occasional sound of dripping water in the distance echoed through the cavernous space.
"Was it because it was amusing? Or out of charity?"
Nightmare's voice remained calm, but inside those amber slit pupils, something was slowly burning:
"Or... some other reason?"
She closed her eyes, feeling an unnamable rage surging within her heart.
That rage was not a fire erupting outward, but a fury like a dark undercurrent beneath thousand-year-old ice—quiet, enduring, yet capable of eroding all things.
A moment later, she opened her eyes once more.
Burning within her amber slit pupils was a resolve bordering on obsession.
...
After the plot of Act Two came to a complete close, a week quickly passed.
During this week, academy life gradually returned to a surface calm.
The squeak of chalk in classrooms, the turning of pages in the library, and the occasional explosion from the Department of Alchemy intertwined into an everyday movement.
Yet beneath this peaceful exterior, preparations for the Hundred Academy Exchange were underway in full swing.
The exchange representatives for every year level had all been selected.
On the day the list was posted, students crowded in front of the bulletin board, with gasps of awe, cheers, and sighs of regret echoing one after another.
None was more shocked and incredulous than Alice.
When she stood before the bulletin board and saw the two side-by-side names on it—Greg Sass (Second-year Representative) and Victoria Cecil (First-year Representative)—her mind went completely blank for several full seconds.
Although Greg had told her long ago about being selected early as a representative, she had never imagined that a girl of commoner background like Victoria would also be chosen.
Two supreme geniuses under one master!
When this thought surfaced in her mind, she almost believed she was dreaming.
But the gazes of the surrounding professors—which had once looked down on her with disdain—had now turned to surprise, admiration, and even subtle jealousy.
That confirmed to her the reality of it all.
Right now, walking along the path toward her own laboratory, Alice felt those gazes coming at her from every direction, making her steps feel a bit light and floating.
Her oversized professor's robe swayed gently with her footsteps. She subconsciously pulled her sleeves together to try to look more composed, but the irrepressible upward curve at the corners of her mouth betrayed the joy in her heart.
"I never expected that one day I'd enjoy treatment like this..."
She whispered to herself, her ice-purple eyes sparkling with a nearly dreamlike light:
"Maybe I really ought to thank them properly."
She even began planning in her mind that when she met those two disciples later, she would definitely praise them thoroughly and treat them to a good meal in celebration.
Carrying this bright mood, she pushed open the wooden door to her old laboratory.
"Screeech—"
The door hinges let out a familiar grinding sound.
Alice reached out to feel for the switch by the door and pressed it.
The old magic lamp on the ceiling flickered to life, casting a dim yellow glow that illuminated the aged desks and chairs inside, the shelves stacked with books and experimental apparatus, and—
Two figures who had been waiting there for a long time.
"Eeeek—!!"
Alice let out a sharp squeal and jumped half a step backward, her oversized professor's robe nearly sliding off her shoulders.
"W-Why are you two here so early!?"
Alice's voice cracked slightly from the shock.
Greg struck out of what he considered an imposing JOJO pose and stepped forward two paces, a smug smile plastered across his face:
"Silly, because our goal is the sea of stars, of course!"
Then he held up a finger and launched into his speech:
"This exchange isn't just debates; there's also a research presentation phase! If we want to truly make a splash at the exchange, we must go all out to prepare in every area! Only then will we have a chance to make everyone remember our names!"
These words were genuinely heartfelt.
Over the past week, Greg had repeatedly pondered how to get close to the Church of Light's current Saintess during the exchange.
But with his current identity and standing, trying to approach a Saintess surrounded by layers of guards was nothing short of a pipe dream.
But if he performed exceptionally enough at the exchange—so outstandingly that no one could ignore his existence—then the situation would be completely different.
While I can't actively approach her on my own, I can make her want to actively contact me!
It was a simple and effective strategy.
And to achieve this goal, he had to display overwhelming strength and talent in every single segment of the exchange!
Victoria nodded beside him, the same fighting spirit burning in her gray eyes:
"That's right! Since we're participating, we absolutely have to take first place!"
Her reason was far simpler and purer—she had heard that winning first place came with a handsome cash prize.
For a girl of commoner background who had been fiercely obsessed with money from a young age, that reason was more than sufficient.
"You two...!"
Looking at her two disciples before her, Alice felt an indescribable wave of emotion surge in her heart.
A thin sheen of moisture rose in her ice-purple eyes, and her hands trembled slightly beneath her wide sleeves from excitement.
For from their eyes, she truly saw a thirst for knowledge, a pursuit of honor, and a yearning for the future.
What pure, fiery gazes those were!
Alice even began deeply condemning herself in her heart—how could she have misunderstood such good students before?
She had actually believed Greg was an unaccomplished prodigal son, and that Victoria was just a commoner student with no future.
How utterly wrong she had been!
Rate on N.U.
