It was the afternoon. Julius had slept in the day before the entrance exam.
Silleto had found him and had been bugging him again.
She was a firm believer in her own conspiracy.
Julius sat on a stone bench near one of Ruloy Academy's many training courtyards, lazily watching the other applicants prepare for tomorrow's brutal entrance exam.
Beside him was Silleto, keeping moderate distance.
Despite their rocky introduction, the two of them had somehow fallen into a casual conversation.
"So," Silleto said, arms crossed. "Why are you here? I promise I won't tell."
Julius shrugged. "Why are you here?"
"I'm here to become stronger," Silleto replied simply. "Or rather to control my strength... Which would technically make me stronger... Yeah"
"Vague."
"Answer my question! I promise I won't tell anyone."
Julius let out a fake dramatic sigh and leaned back. "If you must know, I'm here on a mission of divine importance."
Silleto raised an eyebrow. "Divine? Like Gods?"
"Yes," Julius nodded solemnly. He lowered his voice. "I am a hero after all."
Silleto stared at him, nodding frequently.
Julius put a hand on his chest, making his expression look as serious as possible.
"I was born to an ordinary family… but fate had different plans for me." He turned to the sky dramatically. "One day, I awakened to my destiny—a power so great that it made me a target. I was forced to leave my homeland and wander this cruel, merciless world, searching for the strength to face my fate."
Silleto narrowed her eyes. "...Go on."
Julius coughed. "Yeah."
"Eventually I had defeated so many enemies in my path to face my destiny that they called me a hero. I was given a mission to save the world, and it all starts here."
"Are you sure you didn't just get lost?"
"No trust me, I need to be at this school." And away from that freaky ghoul and those kidnappers.
The two sat in silence for a bit, watching students sparring in the training field.
"To save the world..." Silleto mumbled. Her eyes trembling. "Why did they make you pretend to be level 1? Wouldn't it be better to act average?"
"Whoever chose to make that decision must've just disliked me, I suppose."
Then, suddenly—
"My life is over."
Julius turned his head to see none other than Yevian Yulestroth, walking past with a dead look in his eyes.
It was clear he hadn't noticed them.
Julius and Silleto exchanged glances before Julius called out, "Yevian. You good?"
Yevian stiffened, turning sharply toward them.
"Oh... Julius and... Her..."
"I'm Silleto, wait-. Does he know the secret?" Silleto turned her head to Julius.
Julius shook his head before looking back to Yevian.
For a brief moment, he looked genuinely panicked.
Then, with a deep sigh, he walked over and sat down on the bench beside them.
"...I'm done with this academy" he muttered.
Julius blinked. "What happened?"
Yevian buried his face in his hands.
"A rumor broke out," he groaned. "Apparently, I was caught spying on the girls' dormitories."
Julius choked on air. "You... What?"
Silleto frowned. "Spying? Some of the girls in that dormitory are 13 year olds... 13 to 18... This guy is a monster if that's true..."
Julius couldn't help but agree. "But it's false... Right?"
"Yeah," Yevian muttered. "But they said I was peeking. And the worst part?" He looked up, his face filled with despair.
"...They have evidence."
Julius gulped. "What kind of evidence?"
Yevian gritted his teeth.
"They found my wand in the girls' dormitory."
"...Oh."
Now that was bad.
"Julius, you need to wipe him out. This guy is scum-." Silleto stood up, her expression devout to the cause.
Yevian groaned, leaning back against the bench.
"But I didn't do it! I was just... exploring!"
Julius squinted. "...What do you mean exploring?"
"Look, I like knowing my surroundings!" Yevian huffed. "I was walking around the campus, trying to get a feel for the academy, and somehow I ended up near the girls' dorms. I had no idea where I was, okay?! I was so nervous I dashed out and dropped my wand."
Silleto crossed his arms. "And you just so happened to drop your wand there?"
"I DIDN'T MEAN TO!" Yevian threw his arms up. "I must've dropped it without noticing!"
Julius rubbed his temples. "...They won't expel you right?"
Yevian slumped in defeat. "No, my family is too prestigious. But my reputation... My image... This is the worst."
Julius sighed. "I believe you."
Yevian's eyes flickered—just for a moment—before he let out a dramatic sigh of relief. Almost too dramatic.
Yevian turned to him. "...You do?"
"Yeah, you don't seem like the type to be a creep. Or maybe I've just biased because you stood up for me."
"Let's side with the creep..." Silleto squinted her eyes.
"No creeps here." Yevian coughed before looking back to Julius. Don't look at me like that-.
Yevian exhaled in relief. "...Finally, someone with common sense."
There was a moment of silence before Yevian suddenly clenched his fists.
"...You don't get it," he muttered.
Julius frowned. "What do you mean?"
Yevian's expression darkened.
"You think this is frustrating? You have no idea."
His normally confident demeanor cracked for the first time.
"My whole life, I've had to deal with bullshit like this. You think it's easy being me?" He laughed bitterly. "People see 'Yulestroth' and assume I'm some untouchable prodigy—but do you know what it's really like?"
Julius and Silleto listened quietly.
"In my family," Yevian continued, his voice low, "I'm nothing.It doesn't matter if I have talent, if I don't follow the family orders word for word, they treat me like I'm nothing."
"That's why I have to be like this. I have to act untouchable. I have to keep winning. I have to make them respect me." His gaze flickered toward the training field. "People like Sunday—people who challenge me, people who expect me to be unbeatable—I can't afford to lose to them."
Julius had never seen Yevian this serious before.
For a moment, the confident, smug noble was gone.
Instead, there was just a boy trying to survive.
A moment passed.
Then—
Yevian exhaled sharply.
"...Ugh, whatever. I don't know why I'm telling you all this. Probably because you're weak to the point that you couldn't betray me if you tried..."
"Yeah... He's really weak don't worry." Silleto said smugly before winking at Julius.
In the very next second, his expression snapped back to his usual on guard demeanor.
"Forget it," he said, standing up and dusting himself off. "I have to go fix this misunderstanding before I get assassinated by angry noble girls."
Julius and Silleto watched as Yevian stretched and walked away, acting as if nothing had ever happened.
"...That was weird," Julius muttered.
Silleto scoffed. "He crashed out..."
Julius hummed.
"Appraisal."
[Silleto- Level 42]
"You're pretty strong, I guess. But weren't you talking about all that great power-."
"So you are a hero!" Silleto's eyes lit up.
"Didn't you already-." Julius was confused.
"Yeah but now I saw it right before me."
"Ok..."
"As for my power, trust me. Once I get unsealed, I'll be a whole new person."
"Who sealed you?"
"Classified."
"So they just sealed your powers away? Why?"
Silleto looked at the sky menacingly. Her ambers eyes glowing with power.
"So I can learn how to control them without causing mass destruction."
"And what are your powers?"
"You will know when the time comes... Hero."
Silleto walked away cinematicly, leaving Julius sitting on the bench alone.
"I guess I should just take a walk."
Julius wandered through Ruloy Academy's expansive training grounds, his mind still lingering on Yevian's unexpected outburst.
The Yulestroth heir had always seemed like the type to always remain composed.
It was strange.
Maybe everyone here was carrying more than they let on. Despite their immense power, perhaps everyone was soft on the inside.
As he walked, he heard the faint sound of crackling energy.
BZZT.
His steps slowed.
Up ahead, in an empty training field, stood Sunday—the purple-haired prodigy who had dueled Yevian yesterday.
Unlike before, her usual aura of confidence was missing. Her thin body was covered in bruises.
Her expression was tense, her body rigid with frustration as she swung her blade in rapid succession.
Crackles of purple lightning surged around her weapon, distorting the air with each strike.
It was clear she was pushing herself hard, as if trying to vent her emotions.
Julius frowned.
She had seemed so sure of herself yesterday.
Yet now, she looked like she was… doubting everything.
"…"
For a moment, he considered turning back, instead he slowly walked up- curiously.
But before he could make a decision—
Her sharp gaze snapped toward him.
Julius froze. Killing intent rushed into his mind.
Shit.
Without hesitation—
She threw her sword at him with power.
"ASSASSIN?!"
Julius' eyes widened.
Don't tell me-.
THUNK!
The sword smacked him right in the forehead, bolts of thunder dancing off the edges.
The world spun.
Then—
Darkness.
Groggily, Julius opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was a face way too close to his.
Green, piercing eyes.
A sharp, serious expression.
Sunday was leaning over him, staring intensely.
…Did I get brain damage?
He blinked.
Slowly, her expression shifted.
"You're alive?" she muttered, as if she had been genuinely expecting otherwise.
Julius blinked again.
"...Unfortunately."
Sunday exhaled sharply, standing up straight.
"Don't scare me like that," she huffed, crossing her arms. "I thought I accidentally killed you. I wouldn't want to kill a student, my life would be over."
Julius groaned, sitting up and rubbing his forehead.
"You did almost kill me," he muttered. "Is it okay for my head to still be spinning?"
Sunday scoffed. "You should've dodged."
"Who the hell throws a sword as a first reaction?! And you charged it with your lightning too!"
"A good warrior reacts first, thinks later," she said matter-of-factly. "Brains are useless if you lack the power to use them."
"That's how people get arrested for murder."
Sunday rolled her eyes.
"Whatever. You were sneaking around, so I assumed the worst. You should be thankful my technique was off. If I was serious, your head might've come clean off."
Julius touched his forehead again, still feeling the lingering static of her lightning magic.
"Well, thanks for that experience."
Sunday didn't answer.
Instead, she looked off to the side, her grip tightening slightly.
For a brief moment, silence settled between them.
Then, in a much softer voice, she muttered,
"...I shouldn't have lost that duel. I'm such an idiot."
Julius paused.
She was still thinking about Yevian. Was she obsessed?
Her jaw clenched. "I trained for years to become the best. I was supposed to crush him. But in the end, I wasn't even close."
Julius exhaled.
"...He's extremely powerful," he admitted. "Just because he has a bit of an attitude doesn't mean you should feel down."
Sunday scoffed. "I know. But that's not the issue."
She glanced back at him.
"The issue is that I genuinely thought I was stronger."
Julius watched her carefully.
She wasn't being arrogant—just… disappointed in herself.
"...You know," he started. "If you're still this upset, why not just train more and challenge him again?"
Sunday's eyes narrowed.
"...What do you think I'm doing? Fighting against trees for no reason?"
Julius hesitated. "...No?"
She huffed, but the faintest hint of a smirk tugged at her lips.
Then, she turned back to the training dummy she had been practicing on.
"Go home, level one," she muttered. "Go coup some chickens or something..."
Julius blinked.
"...Wait, you know?"
Sunday snorted. "Everyone does."
Julius sighed, standing up and dusting himself off.
Great. So his humiliation was public knowledge.
Well, whatever. He was still alive, at least.
"…Try not to kill anyone else by accident," he muttered as he walked away.
Sunday didn't respond—she just kept swinging her lightning-infused blade.
As he walked away, she said one last thing...