Arthur
“If I have to teach these people everything myself, my life will be over.”
I stared at the soldiers standing before me and sighed.
“I have absolutely no intention of helping you any more than necessary.
If Alice hadn’t asked me to take responsibility for you, I would have left you behind a long time ago.”
The soldiers lowered their heads.
They had almost no combat experience and barely understood how to use their abilities properly.
Sometimes, I genuinely wondered how some of them had managed to reach One Star in the first place.
They needed to learn everything from the beginning.
But teaching hundreds of people within ten days?
That was practically impossible.
And even if I managed to improve their combat skills, it wouldn’t solve our biggest problem.
The One-Star Awakened had to reach Two Stars.
That was the real challenge.
I could help them strengthen their foundations, improve their techniques, and teach them how to fight more efficiently.
However, none of those things would guarantee that they could break through to the next Star Rank.
They needed Star Cores.
And they needed enough of them to awaken their second star.
I rubbed my forehead.
What a troublesome assignment.
After thinking for a while, an idea finally came to me.
I had ten Two-Star Awakened Warriors under my command.
Why not send them out to hunt beasts and collect their Star Cores while the One-Star Awakened focused on their training?
The weaker soldiers could absorb the cores once they returned.
If everything went according to plan, I wouldn’t have to waste too much time personally supervising every little detail.
With that thought in mind, I raised my voice.
“Everyone, look this way.
I have something to tell you.”
The soldiers immediately began whispering among themselves.
“Lord Arthur wants to speak to us?”
“Does he usually talk to people like us?”
“I thought he only spoke with Lady Alice.”
I could hear every word.
Unfortunately for them, I had excellent hearing.
Still, I couldn’t be bothered to respond to their meaningless chatter.
Instead, I looked directly at them.
“You are useless.”
The entire group fell silent.
“Every single one of you is useless.”
Nobody dared to move.
“You call yourselves Star-Awakened Warriors, yet most of you can’t even perform the simplest tasks correctly.”
I folded my arms.
“Don’t you have any shame?”
Some of them clenched their fists, but none dared to speak.
“If even half of you could perform your duties properly, I might have something good to say about you.”
I paused before continuing.
“But all you do is wave your weapons around like idiots and expect your enemies to fall dead.”
Their expressions grew increasingly uncomfortable.
They had probably expected me to encourage them, praise their efforts, and promise that everything would work out.
Instead, I had crushed whatever confidence they possessed within a few sentences.
Good.
Perhaps a little humiliation would help them understand their situation.
“Now, all Two-Star Awakened Warriors, move to my right.”
“The One-Star Awakened Warriors, move to my left.”
They immediately obeyed.
Once the two groups had separated, I continued.
“There is nothing more to discuss about today’s failures.
From this moment onward, your only responsibility is to strengthen your foundations.”
One of the soldiers hesitantly raised his hand.
“May I ask a question, Lord Arthur?”
I glanced at him.
“Speak.”
The soldier swallowed nervously.
“If we stop hunting beasts, how will we obtain enough Star Cores to reach Two Stars?”
I stared at him for a moment.
“That isn’t your concern.”
The soldier immediately lowered his head.
Nobody else dared to ask anything.
Perfect.
I didn’t need them questioning my decisions.
I needed them to follow instructions.
“Training begins now.”
The One-Star Awakened Warriors immediately started their basic exercises, while the Two-Star Awakened Warriors prepared to head into the forest and hunt beasts.
I watched them disperse.
No matter how hard they try, most of them will eventually die.
They had been given hope.
They had been told that they could become stronger, survive the Star Gate, and return home.
But hope and reality were two entirely different things.
Only a handful would make it out alive.
The rest were nothing more than pieces in Alice’s plan.
Once they had served their purpose, Alice wouldn’t simply allow them to walk away.
She would eliminate those who could no longer be useful.
At least, that was what I believed would happen once the battle was over.
Alice had never been the kind of person who left unnecessary risks behind her.
And when everything was finished, her true nature would become even clearer.
I looked toward the distant forest.
Nameless.
You seem to believe that making a Soul Contract with Alice means you can keep her under your control.
Perhaps you think that because she agreed to become your servant, she will remain obedient forever.
A contract could restrict someone’s actions.
It couldn’t necessarily change what they wanted.
And Alice had always been a woman who knew exactly what she wanted.
### Alice’s Group
Alice’s strategy was almost identical to Noctis’s.
She divided her soldiers into groups, assigning the weaker Awakened to training while sending the stronger ones out to hunt beasts and collect Star Cores.
It was an efficient arrangement.
However, her thoughts were far from the training ground.
Noctis wasn’t supposed to be part of my plans.
She watched the soldiers from a distance, her ocean-blue eyes remaining calm.
Yet somehow, he appeared here and changed everything.
She didn’t know where Noctis had come from.
Nor did she understand why someone like him had become involved in this particular Star Gate.
Every Star Gate had its own rules.
The higher the rank of a Star Gate, the stronger the Awakened required to enter it.
For example, a Two-Star Awakened Gate would normally only permit Two-Star Awakened Warriors to enter.
Anyone below that rank would be rejected.
That was how the system worked.
At least, that was how it was supposed to work.
Nameless was an exception.
He hadn’t entered the Star Gate through the usual method.
Instead, he had been placed inside it specifically to awaken his power.
Alice had known about that from the beginning.
She had already seen it in the future.
She had anticipated Nameless’s arrival, his awakening, and the role he would eventually play.
But now…
Fate had changed.
Noctis hadn’t existed in the future she had originally seen.
He had simply appeared out of nowhere, disrupting events that should have followed a predictable course.
And because of his unexpected presence, Alice had been forced to make a Soul Contract with Nameless earlier than she had intended.
It hadn’t been part of her original plan.
Yet she didn’t regret it.
Not even a little.
In fact, she was glad she had done it.
Nameless was dangerous, unpredictable, and far more important than he realized.
Keeping him close was the right decision.
But there was one thing she couldn’t ignore.
Noctis.
Someone capable of changing fate was not someone she could afford to underestimate.
Perhaps the normal rules governing Star Gates didn’t apply to him either.
Just as they hadn’t applied to Nameless.
Alice knew almost nothing about Noctis’s true abilities.
She didn’t know his Star Rank, the limits of his power, or what he was ultimately trying to accomplish.
And that uncertainty was dangerous.
If Noctis decided to interfere with her plans, everything she had prepared could collapse.
For the first time in a long while, Alice found herself considering a future she couldn’t confidently predict.
I hope you don’t do anything, Noctis.
Her expression remained perfectly composed.
If you stay out of my way, everything should still proceed according to plan.
She looked toward the soldiers training in the distance.
There were still things she needed to accomplish.
The Seven Continents.
The truth behind her parents’ deaths.
The secrets surrounding Nameless and his younger sister.
And, eventually, the future she had always wanted.
A future where she could finally stop fighting.
A future where she could remain beside the person she had chosen.
Her thoughts softened slightly.
Then, when everything is over, we can both live the lives we want.
My King.
### Noctis
I raised an eyebrow.
“Alice… you’re truly dangerous.”
A faint smile appeared on my face as I continued watching her from afar.
She was clever.
Clever enough to notice that something had changed.
Clever enough to recognize that I didn’t belong in the future she had originally planned.
But there was one little problem.
She still didn’t know who I really was.
“If you don’t know my true identity, how could you possibly understand me?”
I chuckled softly.
“I’m not ordinary.”
“Actually, ordinary isn’t even the right word.”
I leaned back against the tree.
“I’m something far beyond that.”
If I wanted to, I could have done countless things from the very beginning.
I could have changed the course of events, disrupted Alice’s plans, or forced everyone here to dance to a tune of my choosing.
But where was the fun in that?
A story was only interesting when the characters had the freedom to make mistakes.
And watching people struggle to understand a situation they couldn’t control was one of my favorite pastimes.
So, for now, I decided to remain a spectator.
“Don’t worry, Alice.”
“I won’t do anything.”
“I’ll simply watch from a distance.”
I paused, then tilted my head.
“Although…”
A playful smile spread across my face.
After all, she had managed to figure out something about me.
Not everything, of course.
Not even close.
But she had noticed the change in fate, and that was more than most people could accomplish.
“I won’t tell you what I want just yet.”
I pushed myself away from the tree and stretched lazily.
“When the time comes, I’ll collect my reward myself.”
I began walking away, humming a little tune.
“For now, make good use of your time.”
My smile widened.
“Because when the time comes…”
I glanced back at Alice.
“Your reward will be incomparable.”
And with that, I disappeared into the shadows.
### Alice’s Speech
Meanwhile, Alice gathered the soldiers beneath the open sky.
Conversations gradually faded as everyone turned their attention toward her.
She stood before them with her usual composure, her reddish hair moving gently in the wind.
“If you’re unwilling to give everything you have, there’s no reason for you to be here.”
Her voice wasn’t particularly loud, yet everyone heard her clearly.
“You seem to believe that everything is simple.
That if you train hard enough, become stronger, and follow orders, you’ll eventually escape this place.”
She paused.
“But reality doesn’t work that way.”
The soldiers listened in silence.
“There is something hidden beneath everything you see.
Something that you cannot understand simply by looking at the surface.”
Her blue eyes swept across the crowd.
“If you want to obtain it, you must be prepared to pay the price.”
She let those words settle before continuing.
“Otherwise, none of you will ever leave this place.”
A few soldiers exchanged uneasy glances.
Alice didn’t comfort them.
She didn’t promise that everyone would survive, nor did she pretend that the path ahead would be easy.
Instead, she gave them something else.
A reason to keep moving.
“If you want to survive, you must understand your true purpose.”
Her tone remained calm.
“Not everything you see is real.
Not every truth is what it appears to be.
And not every opportunity comes without a hidden cost.”
She looked over the crowd one final time.
“So think carefully about why you’re here.”
“Then decide whether you’re prepared to see this through to the end.”
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
Then, slowly, the soldiers began to straighten their backs.
Some looked frightened.
Others looked determined.
And a few seemed to be thinking about her words rather than simply reacting to them.
Among them stood Alex, Nero, Quinn, and Heli.
Alex remained quiet, his thoughts drifting back to the day they had first prepared to enter the Star Gate.
Nucky…
He remembered the blind young man who had accompanied Noctis.
At the time, Alex hadn’t understood their relationship.
Noctis had seemed like an ordinary, carefree man who enjoyed joking around and making fun of others.
He hadn’t acted like someone important.
He hadn’t demanded respect.
And he certainly hadn’t behaved like a person who could influence the fate of hundreds of soldiers.
Later, Alex discovered that Noctis was someone close to Lady Alice.
That alone had surprised him.
But now Noctis had even been entrusted with command over a group of Awakened Warriors.
Alex still found it difficult to believe.
Just two days ago, he was sitting around with us, laughing and talking as if nothing in the world mattered.
Now, everything seemed different.
Noctis appeared stronger.
More dignified.
And far more mysterious.
Of course, Alex couldn’t be certain whether Noctis had changed or whether he had simply failed to recognize the man’s true nature before.
Perhaps the latter was more likely.
After all, people didn’t always reveal who they really were.
Sometimes, the most ordinary-looking person could turn out to be the most extraordinary.
Alex glanced toward the forest, wondering where Noctis and Nucky were now.
Perhaps this really is fate.
He had heard countless stories about destiny.
Most people believed that fate was something everyone possessed, something that guided their lives from beginning to end.
But Alex had begun to wonder whether that was true.
Perhaps fate didn’t choose everyone equally.
Perhaps it selected certain people and placed them at the center of events that would change the world.
People who appeared at the right moment.
People who survived situations they shouldn’t have.
People whose existence seemed to contradict everything others believed to be possible.
And perhaps, at this very moment, two such people were standing at the center of a changing future.
Noctis and Nucky.
Alex couldn’t explain why he felt that way.
He simply had a feeling that the events unfolding inside this Star Gate were far more important than anyone realized.
And if he was right…
Then the fate of everyone here might already have begun to change.