The blond boy stared at me for several seconds before finally letting out a long breath and lowering the dagger he had instinctively drawn.
Beside him, the girl still looked completely frozen, her blue eyes moving repeatedly between my injuries and the corpse of the corrupted bear lying behind me.
The battlefield itself barely resembled a field anymore.
The ground had been shattered beyond recognition, massive cracks spreading across the earth while broken stone and uprooted grass covered the area like the aftermath of a natural disaster.
And somehow…
I was still standing.
“Well,” the blond boy muttered while scratching the back of his head awkwardly, “that definitely wasn’t what I expected to find today.”
I couldn’t help smiling faintly at that.
His reaction felt strangely normal after everything I had experienced recently.
No cosmic horror.
No distorted reality.
Just a random eighteen-year-old trying to process the fact that someone had apparently survived fighting a corrupted B Rank monster alone.
It felt… refreshing.
The girl suddenly stepped forward while tightening her grip around her staff.
“You’re heavily injured,” she said quietly.
“Please sit down before you collapse.”
Her voice was soft, almost timid, but there was still enough firmness inside it to make it obvious she was used to taking care of people.
I glanced down at myself for a moment.
Right.
I was covered in blood.
Several deep wounds still burned across my body, especially around my shoulder where the corrupted bear had nearly ripped my arm apart earlier.
Adrenaline had dulled most of the pain during the fight, but now that the battle was over, exhaustion was beginning to settle heavily into my muscles.
Interesting.
Mortality really was inconvenient.
“I’ll survive,” I replied calmly.
The blond boy immediately laughed.
“Yeah, no offense, but you look like you’re about five minutes away from dying.”
“Kael,” the girl whispered in embarrassment.
“What?
I’m just being honest.”
Despite myself, I laughed quietly.
The sound surprised even me.
It had been a very long time since interacting with other people felt this natural.
Eventually, I lowered myself onto one of the shattered rocks nearby while the girl approached carefully.
Up close, she looked around my age, perhaps slightly shorter than average, with long silver-blue hair and surprisingly calm eyes despite the destroyed battlefield surrounding us.
She raised her staff slowly before soft blue mana began gathering around her hands.
Water element.
No.
Not combat-oriented.
Healing.
The moment the magic touched my shoulder, a cool sensation spread through the wound almost instantly.
Torn flesh slowly began closing itself while the pain faded significantly.
Authority of Knowledge reacted instinctively inside my mind, analyzing the spell structure automatically.
The mana circulation was stable, efficient, and surprisingly refined for someone her age.
Interesting.
“She’s good,” I muttered absentmindedly.
The girl blinked in surprise before lowering her eyes slightly.
“Thank you…”
Kael immediately grinned.
“See?
I keep telling her she’s amazing, but she never believes me.”
“I do believe you,” Lyra replied softly.
“No, you absolutely don’t.”
While the twins continued arguing quietly, I simply watched them in silence for a moment.
It felt strange.
Not unpleasant.
Just… unfamiliar.
Back on Earth, relationships had always felt artificial because reality constantly adjusted itself around me.
Conversations became too smooth.
Bonds formed too easily.
Nothing ever felt earned.
But now?
There was no invisible force manipulating events anymore.
These people were speaking to me because they genuinely chose to.
And somehow, that simple fact carried more value than entire centuries of artificial perfection.
“So,” Kael suddenly asked while sitting across from me, “who exactly are you?”
For a brief moment, I considered telling the truth.
Former omnipotent existence beyond reality itself currently relearning mortality through violence and emotional reconstruction.
Probably not the best introduction.
“My name is Noctis,” I answered instead.
“I’ve been traveling alone for a while.”
Kael nodded immediately like that answer was completely normal, but Lyra studied me more carefully.
“You’re heading toward the capital too, aren’t you?” she asked.
“Aetherion Academy,” I replied.
That instantly changed their expressions.
Not fear.
Excitement.
“So you’re taking the entrance exam too?!” Kael asked while nearly standing up again.
“Perfect!
We were already heading there ourselves.”
“We thought traveling together might be safer,” Lyra added quietly.
“Especially recently…”
Her voice trailed off slightly at the end.
War.
Even without asking further, I could already tell that word alone explained enough.
Authority of Knowledge had already gathered fragments of information about the region earlier.
Border conflicts between humans and demon territories had intensified during recent years, forcing many villages into poverty or complete destruction.
Looking at the twins now, the signs became obvious.
Their clothing was clean but worn.
Their equipment had clearly been repaired multiple times.
Even the way they reacted to danger felt different from ordinary civilians.
They were survivors.
Just like the countless people this world kept sacrificing to its endless wars.
“We’re from a small village near the western border,” Kael explained while casually leaning back against a broken stone.
“Or… what’s left of it, anyway.”
Lyra lowered her eyes silently.
Ah.
Orphans.
I understood immediately.
For a brief moment, memories of my former existence surfaced instinctively.
Endless cities.
Infinite realities.
And yet somehow…
This small conversation beside a destroyed field felt more real than any of it.
“I’m alone too,” I said quietly.
The twins looked toward me again.
“I lost my family a long time ago.”
Not technically false.
Silence settled briefly between us, though not an uncomfortable one.
Then Kael suddenly clapped his hands together loudly before standing up again with a grin.
“Well then, perfect!
Three future Aetherion students heading toward the capital together sounds way better than dying alone on the road.”
Lyra sighed softly.
“You immediately assume we’ll pass.”
“Obviously we’ll pass.”
Then his eyes shifted toward me again before a mischievous grin slowly appeared on his face.
“Actually… after seeing this battlefield, I’m more curious about your exam than mine.”
I smiled faintly.
“You’ll have to wait and see.”
We left the destroyed battlefield shortly afterward.
Well… “left” was probably an optimistic way to describe it.
Lyra still insisted on supporting part of my weight despite my repeated attempts to tell her I could walk normally, while Kael kept glancing back toward the corpse of the corrupted bear every few minutes like he still couldn’t fully believe what he had seen.
The surrounding landscape slowly changed as we continued traveling toward the capital.
Endless plains eventually gave way to larger roads carved directly through the wilderness, and the further we moved eastward, the more signs of civilization began appearing around us.
Small merchant caravans occasionally passed nearby, guarded by mercenaries wearing worn armor marked by old battles.
Farmers worked distant fields beneath the afternoon sun while ruined watchtowers stood scattered across parts of the horizon like remnants of older wars.
Nythera felt alive in a way most worlds never had.
Messy.
Imperfect.
Human.
And strangely enough, I loved it already.
“So,” Kael suddenly asked while spinning one of his daggers casually around his fingers, “where exactly did you learn to fight like that?”
I glanced toward him briefly.
“Like what?”
He stared at me in disbelief.
“You fought a corrupted B Rank monster alone.”
“Technically, I almost died.”
“Yeah, but you still won.”
Fair point.
“I trained for a long time,” I answered calmly.
That wasn’t entirely false either.
Even if my “training” involved transcending existence itself rather than practicing conventional combat.
Kael accepted the answer surprisingly easily, though Lyra still seemed less convinced.
Every now and then I caught her observing me quietly whenever she thought I wasn’t paying attention.
Not with fear.
Curiosity.
Interesting.
Humans really were perceptive creatures when reality wasn’t constantly manipulating their thoughts around me.
“You don’t really act like someone from the countryside,” Lyra said softly after several minutes of silence.
Kael immediately nodded.
“Yeah, seriously.
You talk like some noble from the capital.”
I almost laughed at that.
If only they knew.
“I traveled a lot,” I replied instead.
Thankfully, Kael seemed far more interested in talking than questioning suspicious details.
Within less than an hour, he had already started explaining practically everything he knew about Aetherion Academy despite openly admitting that most of his information came from rumors, travelers, and exaggerated stories from mercenaries passing through border villages.
Apparently, the academy was considered one of the most prestigious institutions on the entire continent.
Nobles, royal families, military prodigies, gifted mages, and even certain foreign races regularly competed to enter every year.
Very few succeeded.
“The entrance exam changes constantly,” Kael explained excitedly while walking backward in front of us.
“Some years they make applicants fight monsters, some years they throw everyone into giant survival zones, and apparently once they made people fight illusion magic for three straight days until half the applicants went insane.”
“That rumor was probably exaggerated,” Lyra said quietly.
“Probably,” Kael admitted.
“But it still sounds awesome.”
I listened silently while Authority of Knowledge continued analyzing information in the background automatically.
The academy itself clearly held far more influence than a simple educational institution.
Politically, militarily, and economically, Aetherion Academy functioned almost like an independent power balancing the continent itself.
Interesting.
That explained why so many nations tolerated gathering future monsters in the same place despite constant wars and political tensions.
“They also say students inside the academy are ranked constantly,” Kael continued.
“Duels happen all the time.
Nobles challenge each other over stupid pride stuff, elite mages compete for resources, and apparently some professors are even stronger than military commanders.”
“That part is true,” Lyra added.
“I heard certain instructors are former S Rank adventurers.”
S Rank.
Even now, the concept still interested me.
According to the standards of Nythera, S Rank individuals already stood beyond conventional warfare.
Kingdoms feared them more than armies.
Some could destroy cities alone.
Others altered battlefields themselves through overwhelming elemental mastery.
And yet…
Something told me the true monsters of this world still existed far above that level.
The gods.
The Demon Kings.
Perhaps even the hidden anomaly buried somewhere inside Nythera itself.
A faint smile appeared on my face.
Good.
That meant I still had room to grow.
The road eventually became more crowded as the sun slowly began descending toward the horizon.
Travelers from countless different regions moved toward the capital for the academy examination.
Some wore expensive armor decorated with noble insignias while others traveled in groups guarded by mercenaries or servants.
The difference in social classes became obvious almost immediately.
Certain nobles openly ignored commoners walking beside the road.
Merchant caravans prioritized wealthy travelers first.
Guards inspected poorer applicants more aggressively at checkpoints while allowing richly dressed families to pass almost instantly.
And then there were the looks.
Subtle things.
Disgust.
Arrogance.
Contempt.
Especially toward non-humans.
The individual wore a dark cloak concealing most of his appearance, but crimson skin remained visible beneath the fabric alongside two small black horns emerging from his hair.
A demon.
The atmosphere around the road shifted immediately.
Several humans stared openly.
Others whispered quietly among themselves.
One noble-looking boy visibly placed his hand near the sword at his waist while watching the cloaked demon pass.
Interesting.
So even here, tension between races remained unavoidable.
The demon ignored everyone completely and continued walking toward the capital alone.
Kael watched the scene awkwardly before scratching the back of his head.
“Honestly… I never really understood all the hatred.”
“Most people near the borders lost someone because of the war,” Lyra answered softly.
“Fear becomes easier than understanding.”
Neither of them noticed the faint smile that briefly crossed my face afterward.
Unlike most humans here, I had already observed countless realities collapse because of hatred, race, religion, greed, or fear.
Compared to the endless horrors hidden throughout existence, Nythera’s conflicts almost felt… small.
But perhaps that was precisely why they mattered.
Because to the people living here, these wars were their entire world.
Night slowly approached while the distant silhouette of enormous walls finally appeared far beyond the horizon.
The capital.
The closer we moved toward the capital, the denser the road became.
Entire groups of applicants traveled in the same direction now, some confident and loud, others visibly nervous beneath the pressure surrounding Aetherion Academy.
Carriages carrying noble families occasionally passed beside us while adventurers, mercenaries, and wandering mages filled the rest of the road in smaller groups.
And above all of it…
The capital itself towered over the horizon like a world separate from everything around it.
Even from this distance, the scale was absurd.
Massive black walls surrounded the city like a fortress designed to resist entire armies, stretching endlessly toward both sides of the horizon.
Countless lights illuminated the upper districts while enormous towers pierced the darkening sky far beyond the outer walls.
At the very center of it all stood something even larger.
Aetherion Academy.
For a few seconds, even Kael became silent.
The academy rose above the capital itself like a kingdom inside another kingdom.
Multiple enormous structures spread across the mountainside behind the city, connected through gigantic bridges and layered terraces glowing beneath magical lights.
Towers dedicated to magic training stood beside colossal arenas large enough to host military battles while floating platforms drifted slowly through the sky above the main campus.
Mana itself felt denser there.
Heavier.
Even from kilometers away, I could already sense countless powerful presences gathered within the academy grounds.
Interesting.
“So… we’re really going there,” Kael muttered quietly.
Lyra tightened her grip slightly around her staff while staring at the academy with wide eyes.
“It’s bigger than I imagined…”
Honestly, I understood the reaction.
Aetherion Academy did not merely look prestigious.
It looked dangerous.
Like a place specifically built to create monsters.
The massive gates leading toward the capital remained heavily guarded by armored knights wearing silver and dark blue uniforms marked with the academy’s crest.
Travelers slowly passed through security inspections while large mana crystals floated above the entrance, scanning everyone entering the city.
Authority of Knowledge activated automatically the moment my eyes landed on them.
Detection-type magical artifacts.
High precision mana analysis.
Designed to identify dangerous individuals, hidden weapons, elemental affinities, and unstable mana signatures.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
I suppressed my dark mana instinctively.
The seals around my existence tightened slightly in response, carefully concealing the abnormality hidden beneath my current state.
For now, revealing darkness would only create unnecessary attention.
“We should probably avoid causing trouble before the exam,” Lyra said softly while watching a noble argue loudly with one of the guards near the entrance.
Kael laughed immediately.
“That sounds more like advice for me than him.”
“Definitely advice for you.”
Their casual argument continued while we slowly approached the gates alongside the growing crowd of applicants.
The atmosphere around us felt strangely tense despite the noise and movement surrounding the capital.
Excitement.
Fear.
Ambition.
Arrogance.
Everyone here wanted something.
Power.
Status.
Recognition.
A future.
And somewhere inside all that ambition, countless future monsters were already walking beside each other without realizing it yet.
Suddenly, several people nearby began whispering quietly.
Not about us.
About someone farther ahead.
I followed their gaze instinctively.
A young woman with long silver hair walked calmly through the crowd surrounded by several guards wearing noble insignias.
The mana surrounding her was noticeably denser than most applicants nearby, cold frost slowly forming beneath her footsteps before disappearing instantly.
Ice element.
High compatibility.
Potential A Rank minimum.
Interesting.
“She’s probably a noble from one of the major families,” Lyra whispered quietly.
Kael clicked his tongue immediately.
“Must be nice being born talented and rich.”
“You’re talented too.”
“Yeah, but I’m definitely missing the rich part.”
I smiled faintly while listening to them.
Strangely enough, this simple conversation felt more valuable than most of my former existence.
Back then, entire civilizations bent themselves around my will unconsciously.
Relationships became artificial because reality itself constantly manipulated outcomes in my favor.
But here?
Nothing guaranteed these moments.
Nothing forced these people to walk beside me.
And somehow, that uncertainty made everything feel infinitely more real.
The line at the gates slowly continued moving forward while the lights of the capital illuminated the night around us.
Somewhere beyond those enormous walls waited Aetherion Academy, the beginning of my new existence, and perhaps the first real step toward understanding why Nythera had managed to intrigue even a being like me.
For the first time in eternity…
I was genuinely looking forward to tomorrow.