WOOOOO—!!
The emergency sirens echoed across the academy.
Every student’s communicator lit up crimson.
EMERGENCY ALERT
A Dimensional Gate has manifested beneath the academy.
Threat Level: Unknown.
All students are to evacuate immediately.
Panic spread through the arena.
“Is this part of the tournament?”
“It has to be a drill, right?”
“Why is every professor drawing their weapons?”
The smiles on the instructors’ faces had vanished.
This wasn’t a drill.
High above the arena, the Headmaster’s voice boomed through every speaker.
“Faculty members, establish defensive formations!”
“Second and third-year combat students, prepare for emergency deployment.”
“First-years, evacuate in an orderly manner!”
Kael frowned.
“Wrong…”
Everything was wrong.
The first Gate in his previous life had appeared in the capital—six months later.
Not beneath the academy.
Not today.
“The timeline is accelerating.”
Beside him, Lucien quietly adjusted the wooden sword at his waist.
“So…”
“You’ve realized it too.”
Kael glanced at him.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen.”
Lucien nodded.
“Someone is changing history.”
“You?”
A faint smile crossed Lucien’s face.
“If it were me…”
“I’d have warned everyone.”
Kael couldn’t tell whether he was telling the truth.
The ground suddenly shook.
BOOOOOOM!!
A massive crack split the center of the arena.
Students screamed as the stone floor collapsed inward.
From the darkness below…
Black mist poured into the sky.
Mana became so dense that weaker students struggled to breathe.
Professor Roland’s expression paled.
“This amount of mana…”
“It can’t be an E-Rank Gate.”
Another instructor whispered,
“Not even B-Rank…”
The Headmaster slowly drew the ancient sword hanging at his waist.
“…An A-Rank.”
Every professor fell silent.
An A-Rank Gate appearing inside an academy…
…was nothing short of a catastrophe.
Deep within the Infinite Sword Archive…
Astra’s cheerful expression disappeared.
“Master.”
Her voice became unusually serious.
“Whatever is inside…”
“…it isn’t a normal monster.”
Even the other Divine Swords had gone quiet.
That alone made Kael uneasy.
Suddenly—
A terrified scream echoed from the collapsing arena.
“HELP!!”
A section of the audience had fallen into the massive fissure.
Dozens of students clung desperately to broken stone as the ground continued to crumble.
One of them was Mira.
“N-No…”
She struggled to keep her grip.
Chunks of rock fell into the endless darkness below.
Her fingers slipped.
Kael moved instantly.
BOOM!!
The arena floor cracked beneath his feet as he sprinted forward.
Without hesitation, he leapt into the collapsing chasm.
“KAEL!!”
Lyra’s voice rang out behind him.
The world blurred.
Debris rained around him.
Mira closed her eyes.
“I’m going to die…”
Then…
A warm hand grabbed her wrist.
She looked up.
Kael.
“You…”
He smiled calmly.
“I’ve got you.”
With his free hand, he stabbed his practice sword into the cliff wall, slowing their fall.
Stone shattered.
The blade bent under the pressure.
“Master.”
Astra whispered.
“You’ll need me.”
Kael hesitated.
Summoning Astra here would expose too much.
Then he looked at the terrified students still falling around him.
There was no choice.
“Astra.”
A silver light flashed.
For the briefest instant, a radiant sword appeared in his hand.
Its edge gleamed like moonlight.
With a single swing—
SHIIIIING!!
A silver arc sliced through the air.
Not to attack…
But to carve a staircase into the cliff face itself.
Dozens of perfectly shaped stone platforms appeared along the wall.
“Climb!”
Kael shouted.
The falling students quickly scrambled onto the newly formed ledges.
Professors above immediately began pulling them to safety. New chapters come out on g.com first.
Only a handful of people had actually seen the silver blade.
Among them…
The Headmaster.
Lyra.
Lucien.
Mira’s feet finally touched solid ground.
She looked at Kael with wide eyes.
“You…”
“You saved everyone.”
Kael scratched the back of his head.
“I just happened to be nearby.”
Astra sighed inside his mind.
“Master…”
“Your ability to pretend nothing happened is extraordinary.”
Before anyone could speak further…
The black mist condensed.
A pair of enormous crimson eyes opened within the darkness.
A low growl echoed through the cavern.
The pressure alone caused nearby walls to crack.
One professor whispered in horror,
“That’s…”
“No…”
“It can’t be…”
The mist exploded outward.
A massive wolf emerged.
Its body was covered in black crystal armor.
Six crimson horns curved backward from its skull.
Its golden fangs were longer than swords.
The monster stared directly at Kael.
Then…
To everyone’s disbelief…
It bowed its head.
Silence.
Complete silence.
The creature spoke in a deep, ancient voice.
“So…”
“The Master of the Infinite Sword Archive…”
“…has finally returned.”
Every person present froze.
Kael’s eyes widened.
“It can speak?”
The wolf slowly raised its head again.
Its golden eyes held neither hatred nor bloodlust.
Only curiosity.
“I have guarded this Gate for a thousand years.”
“I have awaited the one destined to inherit the title…”
“…of the Sword Sovereign.”
The beast’s aura erupted.
The surrounding cavern shook violently.
The Headmaster gripped his sword.
Lucien’s expression became grim.
Even Astra whispered with unmistakable caution.
“Master…”
“This isn’t an enemy you can defeat…”
“…not yet.”