* * *The man woke up within a dream.What greeted him was a cityscape filled with towering buildings and people.Well-maintained roads and nurous cars, coffee houses beneath skyscrapers, n heading to work, elderly with the latest smartphones and canes, tired working mothers, and the rosy cheeks of children holding their mothers’ hands.It felt as if this scene would co alive at any mont, but this was not reality—it was a dream.Everything within the man’s line-of-sight remained still.Everything in this world was frozen, like a still fra from a movie.…This is not a high-level dream. Is it that urgent?After observing the scene for a mont, the man rose from his spot.There was neither surprise nor fear. After all, this wasn’t the first ti he encountered such a dream.The one who summoned … must be in the east.He walked past the frozen people and headed toward the eastern part of the city.After crossing a frozen crosswalk and traversing various roads while disregarding the traffic.He soon arrived at his destination; a beach that didn’t seem to fit in with the cityscape.The first thing that caught his eye was the vast horizon, as wide as the sea, but this was not the sea.It was Lake Michigan, one of the Great Lakes in Arica, the heart of Chicago, and the location of the massive Dinsional Portal known as the Chicago Dinsional Portal.The man stood on the beach, taking in the view of the lake.To be precise, he was looking at the shimring Dinsional Portal hovering over a massive artificial island created by dwarves.In a dream where everything was frozen, only the Dinsional Portal was alive and moving.[What took you so long?]And as soon as he gazed at the Dinsional Portal, he heard a voice from beyond. It was a remarkably loud voice, as if thunder itself were speaking.“You summon without warning in a dream, and that’s the first thing you say?”Seeing the man speak while frowning, the Dinsional Portal emitted light, as if to justify itself.[It was urgent. There wasn’t any ti to explain.]“…Urgent, huh? Well then, explain just how urgent it was.”Hearing the man speak as if he wanted to see for himself, the voice from beyond the Dinsional Portal responded weakly.[It’s useless.]“…Useless?”[It’s already too late.]Realizing that the situation was more serious than expected, The man frowned deeply as he repeated his question.“As your contractor, I command you to explain what is late and how. At this very mont.”The voice beyond the Dinsional Portal did not respond. Instead, an invisible force grabbed hold of the man.“…What is this about?”[I lack the skill to explain in your human language. So, it’s better if you see for yourself.]What did he have to see for himself??As soon as the man began to ponder over the question, his body was lifted into the sky at such speed that when he looked below, both Chicago and Lake Michigan had beco as tiny as a fingernail.“At least tell the destination before dragging as you wish.”Although sothing like this would usually cause panic, the man inquired calmly. Leaving the Arican continent behind, he was now crossing the Pacific Ocean.Only after the Australian continent began to appear in the distance did the voice finally answer.[We are heading to a place the Earthians call Lord Howe Island.]Lord Howe? The man rubbed his chin as he thought of the academy.What sort of trouble could have occurred in a place that was perfectly fine until this morning?Before he could contemplate any further, the invisible force set him down on the ground.Once his feet touched the ground, the man instinctively understood that he was on Lord Howe Island.After all, not many places in this world had potential so imnse that it could distort the dream world.[Can you see it?]The voice inquired. The man shook his head.“No, the potential makes it nearly impossible to see anything.”The man narrowed his eyes and scanned his surroundings.It didn’t matter how hard he concentrated, all he could see were the blurred outlines and a blend of colors that looked like a child’s doodling.This was expected. Just like gravity, the stronger the potential, the more it absorbs and distorts the surrounding dream.[Sheesh, humans.]The voice watching him suddenly infused an unseen force into the man.Its purpose was simple: to offset the surrounding potential and illuminate the man’s vision.Enduring the sudden surge of power, the man peered ahead.[Can you see it now?]“…Yes, it’s a bit clearer now.”The first thing that ca into view was a grassy area that was probably on the outskirts of the academy, with a man and woman sitting side by side.He couldn’t see them clearly due to the distorted outlines, but…A dark night, a man and a woman sitting close together and their face touching —what they were doing was obvious.[What do you think? Even now, you still need to co up with a plan.]Unlike the man, whose tension had eased upon seeing that, the voice remained extrely serious.The man sighed and responded.“…All I see is so promiscuous brats locking lips in the middle of the night.”[…]“What sort of a plan should I co up with for a pair of kids making out? Should I supply breath fresheners to the academy? Or condoms?”As soon as he replied sarcastically, the voice infused even more power into the man’s body.[…Look closer.]Whoosh!This ti, with enough power to shake the dream, the man was able to see what was invisible before.A small bead of light sparkling above the heads of the man and woman.“Potential? To be visible to the eye, that….”[With that level of potential, calling it fate would not be an exaggeration.]As the voice stated, if the inherent potential was visualized in the dream, it would not be surprising to call it fate.Just as heavy gravity would create a black hole that absorbed everything, such potential would also absorb everything around it.“Is it Yunseong? No, it doesn’t look like Yunseong…”The man stared at the two carefully, trying to identify them.However, even with how strong the light of fate was, the faces of the two people, turned away from the orb, were still shrouded in darkness.[The identity of those two is not important. What matters is the orb. Take a closer look at it.]Following the voice’s command, the man squinted and stared directly at the glowing orb. After a mont, he noticed sothing unusual.[Can you see it?]“…Yes, I can see it.”The orb was not a single entity. It was more like two orbs, with one protruding side, had fused into one.“There are only a handful people with such a fate… and now one of them has fused into the other? This is the first ti I have ever co across sothing like this. Have you checked who absorbed whom?”[No. By the ti I noticed the anomaly, one side had already absorbed the other.]The man furrowed his brows. Just as the trials were about to begin, an event like this had already occurred.“…We might need to start over.”The man uttered words of lant or perhaps a sigh. He then turned his head to look in the direction of the voice.“I think we can co up with a plan only after we figure out the identities of the two. There’s still ti, so first, let’s get a good look at their faces…”The sentence hung in the air. His senses—more precisely, the power imbued by the voice —reacted to sothing.…Silence descended upon the frozen dream world. It was a lasting silence.“…Who are you?”Unable to endure it, the man spoke. Vast information, comparable to that of a library, swirled in his mind.At this ti, in this place, the only beings capable of causing sothing like this were at most…“…Mara? Or Maoran Lerac?”There was no response. Was the entity contemplating after being exposed, or was it rely a bluff?As the man pondered and took a step back.Thud.He bumped into sothing.A chilling sensation he had rarely co across.The man looked up cautiously and saw… a colossal shadow looming over him.“A-ack…!”Just as the man was about to scream on recognizing the entity.
『Shh.』
The entity mid placing a finger over their lips. One simple gesture was enough to make the dream waver and seal the man’s mouth.
『This is the mont my Chosen One first claims their fate.』
『This isn’t a mont trivial enough for sothing like a Repeat Sign to sneak a peek.』『So, forget everything you’ve seen here.』
Unable to respond, the man had already awakened from the dream.
And, like with most dreams, he could not rember what the dream was about.
* * *The morning in the first-year dormitory was surprisingly quiet. With none of the loud reveille calls or usual bustle of students.
The ones with good stamina or the light sleepers had already left for the training rooms, and Mage Apprentices began their morning ditation even before the dormitory head made their rounds.To an outsider, it would have looked like the epito of a top-tier academy. However, the reality was sowhat different.Special training.All this diligence was because of the new curriculum announced by the principal just a few days ago.To be honest, the students were rather indifferent when the announcent was first made.Well, unless there was a problem with its regular curriculum, why would they make this sudden change? After all, the academy had been renowned for decades.Hence, bringing in external teachers now seed like just a way to make a show of it.…At least that was what they thought until they saw the list of invited teachers.The mont the list of ‘external guest teachers’ was revealed, the students’ attitudes took a 180-degree turn.- Seva Lermontov? The Infinite Flow teacher is coming here?- Joanna Thule?! Didn’t this person retire from the Holy Knight a while back?- It’s Michele! It’s Michele from the Michele Calculations!Not only graduates who made a na for themselves, but even retired, forr well-known figures, and even renowned scholars were drawn by the academy’s reputation.Upon seeing the list of invited teachers, the students began to eagerly anticipate the start of the special classes, as if it had always been the case.And seeing how they blatantly passed the ti during the temporary class, openly discussing whose class they would attend, there was nothing more to say.However, such expectations did not last long.The day the special class application forms were distributed, the students were made aware of a shocking fact.It would not be the students choosing teachers but rather, the teachers choosing students for the special classes.Only a few students, who had so idea about the political situation surrounding the academy, realized what was happening.The principal was rallying her force, and the special classes were rely a pretext.However, most students, unaware of the political context, interpreted the situation differently.This was now an never-ending competition, where only the most outstanding students would be chosen by the best teachers.- Does this an that only students who are worth being picked will be selected?- The Principal is sharpening her sword!- Damn, wasn’t the entrance exam already over?It was perhaps an inevitable reaction. Except for a lucky few, most of the students had been struggling all their lives to beco top-tier individuals.And naturally, a fierce training and studying competition began.- Hey! Don’t cut in line at the training room, you idiots!- Anyone interested in joining a group purchase of elixirs?- The ‘Vessel’ is personally recruiting for magic study groups! Please join us!Of course, there were students who took a step back from such competition.The Saintess, who needed no further teaching, Jeon Yunseong, who had teachers dispatched directly from the United States, and…Cheon Yeomyeong.He did not actively participate in the special training competition.He willingly yielded his turn to use the training room and flatly rejected study group invitations.Nor did he search for the list of invited teachers.He simply maintained a low profile, making occasional appearances at the temporary classes.Most students interpreted his aloof attitude as confidence that he would be chosen by any teacher he desired.And it did make sense, considering he was the one who had played a major role in the terror incident. His proven skills ant that special teachers were of little concern.And with rumors that so among the invited teachers were openly coming to see Yeomyeong, there was no need to say more.However, a very small number of students, those who still looked at the world through rose-tinted glasses, had a different opinion.- Isn’t he planning to apply to the sa teacher as Seti?- Hong Seti? What’s their relationship?- Can’t you tell? They’ve been pretty much inseparable lately.As always, such trivial rumors about romance could not make a significant impact.Whether the two were publicly dating or not, almost everyone was too busy managing their own affairs to pay much attention.However, there was one person who reacted differently. The Saintess who had been praying in the girls’ dormitory’s internal shrine for several days.- I heard that Seti broke curfew a few days ago.- The northern island is under reconstruction, so it isn’t a place you can visit for fun… Or could it be?The mont she overheard the rumors surrounding Seti and Yeomyeong from the female students gathered in the shrine, she stopped praying, packed the Invisibility Cloak, and took her revolver from her room.
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