The main force within the Empire was the Royal Family.

With power over the Knight's Council and the Magic Tower, there was no other force that could rival their might.

At least, individually.

There was another organization within the Empire which was made up of the collective between all the noble houses. Entrusted with the Empire's administrative matters, the Megrail family not only tolerated their presence but also extended their support to them.

Central adopted a democratic approach, allowing the population to determine the allocation of seats among the houses within the organization.

Additionally, every four years, a new chairperson would be elected to assume control over the affairs.

Central.

A meeting was taking place.

"What's the situation?"

A tall man with sharp eyes and long black hair glanced around the oval table where several important figures sat. His husky voice seemed unfitting for his small frame.

He was a representative member of the Joltice House.

A Viscount family.

"…..Everything is contained. All inmates have been locked up. However, we've received reports of several losses within the penitentiary. Over a dozen guards have been killed, and several cadets from Haven have died. It also appears as if several inmates have escaped the facility. We've already sent the 'hounds' to look for them."

Responding to him was a middle-aged woman with sharp features and short hair. Representing the Verlice family, she was Johanna Verlice.

The conversation continued from there.

"Do you know who is responsible for all of this?"

"Im not aware."

Massaging his chin, another member present within the room interjected.

"…..From the reports I've received the organization is called the Inverted Sky. We don't know much about them, but it's only recently that they've started to become active."

"Does the Royal Family know?"

"They know."

"If so, why haven't they done anything? It's strange. They're usually rather overbearing with stuff like this. Why are they suddenly so quiet?"

"It's because they can't do anything about them."

A crisp voice suddenly interjected and all members quiet down. Sitting at the end of the table was an enchanting woman with long black hair and deep black eyes. She was none other than Delilah.

The one closest to the Zenith.

"The Inverted Sky is an organization that even the Royal Family has trouble dealing with."

Her words brought a certain shock to the room.

While she wasn't exactly a member of Central, her family was. She took advantage of the sudden situation to make an appearance.

"Even the Royal family...? How come we've only heard about them now? How does that even make sense?"

Delilah stared at the members and held back her smirk.

Witnessing such esteemed figures at the helm of the Empire appear so clueless, Delilah couldn't help but feel a certain sense of amusement about the situation.

"We don't know much about the Inverted Sky. However, if there's one thing that I do know is that they are an organization that is much older than the Empire. They date back to the Era of the Shattered World."

"....!"

The looks of shock on the faces of the members were something that Delilah took in with gusto.

It had to be noted that the Era of the Shattered World occurred several thousand years ago.

To put that into perspective, the Empire wasn't even half a millennium old.

"You ask why the Megrail family hasn't done a thing yet..."

With cracks appearing on her usually stoic face, Delilah suddenly smiled.

".....What other reason than fear is there? The Megrail family fears the Inverted Sky, and so should you."

The temperature of the room dropped at her words.

Despite the esteemed status of everyone in the room, a palpable sense of unease descended as Delilah's words reverberated, casting a shadow of oppression over the gathering.

This was exactly what Delilah wanted to achieve with her words.

It was about time that the world was made aware of the organization that they were dealing with.

They had been in the shadows for far too long.

Now that they had started to show their fangs to the world, Delilah planned on dragging them out completely. Only then would she be able to completely get rid of them.

"They are a m—"

"That's enough."

A deep voice cut Delilah off. Frowning, Delilah turned her head to stare at the man seated beside her.

Meeting his eyes, her words remained stuck in her mouth and she turned her head away.

"While my daughter's words are indeed true, there's no need to worry too much."

Despite being in the late sixties, his appearance was flawless. With two deep eyes that seemed to be able to suck in anything that looked into them, Orson Rosemberg, the current chair of Central, and Delilah's father spoke.

"They may be strong, but the depth of their strength isn't as deep as Delilah is making them out to be. The one we should really be worried about is their leader."

His voice contained a certain magnetism that attracted the attention of all those who were listening.

"Their gender remains unknown, and among the members of the organization, they are referred to as 'The one who walks among us',"

Orson Rosemberg explained solemnly.

"However, hardly anyone in the organization has ever seen how they look like or made contact with them."

He paused then and looked up to take in the expressions of all members in the room.

"There's not much that we know about them. There are records dating back to the Era of the Shattered World. However, the records are inconsistent. I've yet to find anything concrete."

Narrowing his eyes, he interlocked his hands.

"However, if there's one thing that I'm certain of is that..."

He paused and took a small breath.

".....A human can't possibly have survived for so long."

His hands gradually tensed.

"It's impossible."

***

Haven.

In the end, the event proceeded as it did in the vision. There was no difference whatsoever.

—Clandice Brow. Jordan Watson. Emile Black…

Names began to flow forth, accompanied by a somber atmosphere that enveloped the surroundings. Subtle cries echoed in the otherwise silent air as Herman Chambers solemnly recited the names of the fallen cadets.

—This is a sad day for all of us. They were bright cadets with a bright future ahead. It's…

I looked around me and took in the sight.

A part of me felt responsible for this.Could I have saved them? Possibly.

However, that was a hard if. There were certain things that I could've done to ensure that at least one person could've been saved.

I knew that.

However, I also knew that such action would bring risk and danger to me.

.....I didn't want people to die.

However, I also knew that I wasn't someone capable of helping everyone. It wasn't my job to help everyone.

That job belonged to someone else.

"...."

I turned to look in the distance where a figure stood. Even now, his appearance attracted the attention of all those around him.

His face remained stoic and emotionless.

However, seeing how tightly his fists were clenched, I knew he was probably blaming himself for the situation.

'Right... It's your job to feel guilty for their deaths.'

I wasn't allowed to have such feelings. I couldn't allow myself to have such feelings. The world was ready to eat me at any mistake.

I couldn't be the hero.

That was something that I couldn't afford to be.

I was just…

A drifting pebble that was trying to stay afloat in this unfamiliar world.

***

".....I should get ready."

Late into the night.

It had been a few hours since the ceremony, and people were slowly starting to head back into their dorms to mourn the losses of their friends.

I spent the time focusing on increasing my experience.

Having failed the mission, I didn't gain the required experience to rank up. The loss felt rather painful since it was going to set me back a week.

However, it was a loss that I was willing to take.

"Failure is already something I'm used to."

Failing wasn't important.

Gaining something from the failure was the most important thing.

∎ EXP + 0.03%

∎ EXP + 0.01%

∎ EXP + 0.02%

∎ EXP + 0.01%

"Huuuu."

I took a deep breath and wiped the sweat from my forehead.

The progress was steady.

"Fifteen left."

I looked at the experience bar and sighed.

I was currently at 85%.

Fifteen didn't sound like much, but when taking into account that I needed to reduce my sleep and drop everything else to even get a chance to get there, it wasn't something that I was keen on doing.

"It's just not enough."

The Mana Synthesis book was too slow.

Well, at least for what I currently desired. I knew from the lectures that the effects of the book would diminish the higher the tier I was.

This meant that the moment I stepped into the next tier, things would progress even more slowly.

It was already rather slow for me. The idea of my progress slowing down didn't sit well with me.

"....I need to get my hands on a better book."

That much became clear to me.

However, how could I do that...?

I had little to no money, and I had never played the game before. I didn't know where the cheats were, or where to find the good books.

The only thing I had were unreliable visions which I never knew when they would appear.

"Haaa."

The more I thought about the situation, the greater the headache I felt.

I was just about to sigh again when all of a sudden, I felt a presence behind me and flicked my head.

"....!"

Immediately, I stood up and stepped back.

"What's the sudden occasion?"

It was none other than Delilah who nonchalantly looked around.

I stood while holding my breath. My heart rocketed out of my chest, and I struggled to keep myself composed.

Several questions flooded my mind as I forced myself to remain calm.

'Why is she her? Did she find something out? Is she here because of what happened at the prison? What are....'

As sweat dripped down from the side of my face and my muscles tensed, Delilah continued to look around.

Eventually, having seen enough, she stopped and looked back at me.

I held my breath and waited for her to speak.

Gradually, her voice reached me and she asked,

"....Do you have any chocolate?"

Uh?