An honorable post charged with protecting the Empire.
It was both a symbol of the Emperor’s deepest trust and proof that its bearer possessed martial might among the very strongest.
And because the Sword Saint, Vitalianus Mahel, had served as the Guardian Knight for so very long, that perception had only grown stronger.
The strongest person in the Empire.
A reliable shield, and the mightiest sword.
So when Hio showed the emblem of the Emperor’s Guardian Knight, a small commotion broke out.
‘...It works better than I expected.’
It was unmistakably the emblem of the Imperial Guardian Knight.
When he showed it and said he had come to meet Sirvert, they let him through to Sirvert’s room without asking or arguing.
Of course, there had been a procedure to confirm whether the emblem was genuine.
And they were still glancing at Hio, eyes full of bafflement.
In any case, he had gotten in comfortably, just as planned.
—Kuh. Old memories come flooding back. I see a few new buildings, but it’s almost exactly the same. Back in the day, if you said you came from Tetradia, those little mage saplings would freeze stiff and try so hard to look good...
Purnell had grown talkative again, lost in old memories.
Letting the words wash past him, Hio made his own assessment of the academy.
‘Overall, it feels similar to Tetradia.’
The style and appearance of the buildings gave him a feeling similar to the ancient city of Tetradia he had seen from the Magic Tower.
Unable to hold back even for that brief moment, Purnell cut into Hio’s thoughts.
—In the first place, academies were created to establish a systematic mage-training system, so it is only natural that it feels similar.
After hearing even that from Purnell, Hio nodded.
Then that made it all the more certain.
‘The House of the Mage is definitely hidden somewhere inside here.’
There were a few suspicious locations, but the academy grounds themselves were so vast that he would have to search diligently.
Before that, though, he needed to finish his conversation with Sirvert first.
“That bastard really made it.”
The faculty building of the academy.
In other words, Sirvert’s room was located on a fairly high floor of the main building.
It was spacious, splendid, and clean.
“To think a guy who used a nickname like ‘Going on Vacation Soon’ would end up like this.”
What was even wrong with that nickname?
As a fellow Korean, Hio could not help but feel embarrassed.
As Hio was looking around the room with such thoughts in mind, the door swung open.
Footsteps entered without hesitation.
A fairly tall man with neatly combed-back hair.
“Sirvert.”
Sirvert’s gaze turned toward Hio, and soon his eyes widened in surprise.
“...Supreme Heavenly Demon?”
* * *
“What on earth is with that outfit... No, more importantly, the insignia of the Imperial Guardian Knight? You received it, not the Sword Saint?”
At Sirvert’s question from across the table, Hio nodded.
“Thanks to someone, the information leaked.”
He meant that information about the Imperial Princess had leaked from Sirvert’s side, which had forced Hio to step in.
At that, Sirvert lowered his head deeply.
“For that... I have nothing to say. I didn’t expect it.”
“Who was it? Where did the information leak from?”
“If my guess is right. No, I’m almost certain. It was Airaitz.”
“...Airaitz.”
Hio took off his hat, set it down beside him, and let out a deep sigh.
If Airaitz was the culprit, then everything did fit together.
“No matter how much I think about it, I don’t understand. Back when we played Bentair, wasn’t he a decent guy without any particular flaws?”
“Without any flaws, huh...”
Come to think of it, that was how he might have appeared to the others.
But Hio knew at least a little of Airaitz’s hidden side.
“Have you seen Airaitz in person since coming here?”
Sirvert shook his head.
“No.”
After answering, he hurriedly added, as if making an excuse.
“I haven’t seen him, but still, we spent time watching him, didn’t we? He was someone who sincerely wanted to protect that game world, no less than we did.”
“No. He didn’t.”
This time, Hio shook his head.
“I don’t know much about him either, but one thing is certain.”
Rank 3. Airaitz.
“That was all an act.”
He was an incurable pervert.
A stalker.
“He was copying me. He was an obsessive stalker of the Supreme Heavenly Demon.”
Why on earth?
For what reason?
Hio neither knew nor wanted to know, so he had simply left him alone...
But it seemed that the sight of him imitating the Supreme Heavenly Demon and running rampant everywhere had seemed fairly reliable to the other rankers.
Of course, even Hio had not expected Airaitz to betray them so openly.
No, was it even right to call this betrayal?
Had they ever been on the same side in the first place? That was how unknowable he was.
“Airaitz was your sasaeng fan...?”
From Sirvert’s perspective, it was hard to believe so readily.
He had only assumed that Airaitz had some gain in mind and had plunged the war into chaos.
But if that was not the case...
“Then are you saying the reason he turned the war into a complete mess was all... because of you?”
“More precisely, he probably wanted to confirm whether I was the same person as the Supreme Heavenly Demon.”
“Insane...”
To cause such sacrifices, to do such a thing, merely for stalking, merely to confirm whether he was the Supreme Heavenly Demon.
It was not easy to believe.
There was another reason it was hard to accept.
“I never mentioned you at all. I only said that I had made arrangements so the Imperial Princess’s plan could succeed. That I had taken out insurance, in a manner of speaking.”
In that situation, how had Airaitz learned of Hio’s existence and set things in motion?
Hio could roughly guess the answer.
“He must have... seen me before.”
Somewhere, he had witnessed Hio and suspected that he was the Supreme Heavenly Demon.
Then where had that place been?
It would have been before the civil war broke out.
And there were only a few moments when Hio had displayed his power, so it was easy to guess.
The city of Sauer.
The city where the Saintess was born, and the place where Hio had faced the Sword Saint.
And...
The place where a demon first appeared. The place where traces of Black Fang had been found.
What that implied was more serious than expected.
Hio’s expression hardened.
“It looks like Airaitz has joined hands with Black Fang.”
Why else would someone as powerful as Airaitz just so happen to appear in a city where a demon had shown up?
And while hiding his own appearance, no less?
He had joined hands with Black Fang.
There was nothing else that came to mind, so Hio’s expression was grave, while Sirvert’s face remained one of continual disbelief.
Hio understood how Sirvert felt.
Even Hio himself was more than a little shocked by what he had just said.
A top-ranked ranker within the top five was moving together with Black Fang.
That was an unfortunate development, one that would make an already uncertain future even darker.
After each of them had finished organizing their thoughts in their own way...
“Right... Now that I think about it, Airaitz was a bit strange.”
Sirvert quietly opened his mouth.
“I just thought he was a little unusual... but there were a few times when I saw him act as if he didn’t care what happened to others, as long as it benefited him.”
Hio nodded.
“I didn’t expect him to go this far either.”
He had simply thought Airaitz was one of the common lunatics you saw in games.
There were people like that, weren’t there? They would follow you around because you were ranked first, act the same way, wear similar equipment, and so on.
In fact, during his days as the Supreme Heavenly Demon, it had happened fairly often, and Hio had only thought Airaitz was another of that type.
It had been strange that someone ranked as high as third would do that, but Hio already knew there were plenty of people in the world who could not be understood.
...But it seemed he was even worse than expected.
Enough to do something like this even in a place that was no longer a game, but had become reality.
“Anyway, we can discuss Airaitz again gradually later...”
Hio leaned forward toward Sirvert.
“Let me ask you one more thing.”
He looked straight into Sirvert’s eyes.
What had been his original purpose in coming to see him?
Had it not been to talk about the Abyss?
“Why didn’t you clear the Abyss?”
So from here on, the real matter began.
Why had they not cleared the Abyss?
How could Nam Tae-min of Earth and Sirvert coexist, and how had he come to be worshiped as the first Awakener?
At Hio’s question, Sirvert’s expression likewise turned serious as he answered.
“Well...”
He took a sip of the prepared tea and spoke his first words, which were somewhat out of the blue.
“The ten thousand rankers living in this world right now. Most of them don’t see this place as reality, unlike us.”
Most of the rankers who had possessed bodies did not regard this world as reality.
Though it was clearly reality, most of them denied it.
The reason was clear.
“You can buy a logout pass from the point shop. That’s why.”
“...Logout...?”
Sirvert nodded as if it were nothing.
To him, it seemed like a matter of course.
“It costs quite a few points to log out, but... in many ways, it’s more profitable to do it. You can earn more points than that outside.”
The things Sirvert said so naturally, so casually, came as a tremendous shock to Hio.
Logout was in the point shop?
...That was impossible.
He had checked dozens upon dozens of times, so he could be certain.
No such item existed in Hio’s point shop.
Unaware of Hio’s shock, Sirvert continued speaking.
“If you distinguish yourself outside and gain fame, points accumulate, don’t they? Of course, the quality isn’t that great, but the quantity overwhelms it. News travels incomparably faster in that world than it does here.”
There was a time limit, but in any case, being able to go out into the outside world lightened the rankers’ hearts.
“That’s why most of the possessed don’t think of this world as reality.”
Even though their circumstances were such that they could only regard it as reality, they did not.
Why?
Because that made them feel at ease.
This was a world that would be destroyed anyway.
People who would die anyway. No, people who had originally been NPCs in the first place.
So they might as well just earn points and protect their original world properly.
That was what most of them thought.
“The plan not to clear the Abyss arose from that.”
If they did not conquer the Abyss, Abyss Gates appeared, and Abyss monsters poured out of them.
If that had been all, the possessed would not have cared about the Abyss at all.
To them, their original world was more precious than this unidentified world.
But if they did not conquer the Abyss, Abyss Gates appeared on Earth in the same way.
From their perspective, not this fake world, but their own reality was being threatened.
That was why this plan came about.
“Let’s use this entire world as a testing ground.”
A world that would be destroyed anyway. At least protect the original world.
Deliberately leave the early parts of the Abyss uncleared and run experiments.
In order to find a way to deal with the cursed energy of the Abyss.
By sacrificing this world.
After all, this was a world that would be destroyed anyway.
After all, they were all people who had been NPCs anyway.
After all, this was not reality, and all their precious bonds were outside, in the real world.
...That was how they made excuses.
“Haa...”
Having listened that far, Hio swept his hair back and rubbed his face dry. He let out a sigh.
A phenomenon where, in a world where everyone could log out, he alone could not leave.
What on earth was going on?
A situation where people who were plainly alive and breathing were being treated as test subjects because this world was considered fake.
How on earth was he supposed to resolve this?
His mind could not help but grow complicated.
* * *
The central plaza fountain of Imenia Academy.
A red-haired girl was cutting across it.
“Claire!”
At the cheerful voice calling her, Claire turned her head.
“Let’s go together!”
The name of the girl running over with a bright smile was Lavena.
She was one of Claire’s few friends.
In truth, it was closer to Lavena having approached her one-sidedly, but it was certain that they were close enough to be called friends.
“Our next lecture is Professor Sirvert’s, right?”
“Yeah.”
“They said it’s combat practice... Do you think I’ll do all right?”
Lavena looked ready to cry, while Claire’s expression seemed to ask what was so difficult about that.
To Claire, it did not matter whether it was practice, an exam, or anything else.
Because what she was aiming for was somewhere impossibly high.
It was only a mock sparring match between children her own age; there was no need to be nervous.
As if she was used to that reaction, Ravena smiled, linked arms with Claire, and walked along with her.
“Still, I’m glad it’s Professor Sirbert’s class! Isn’t he so wonderful? He’s gentlemanly, knows so much, and he’s even incredibly strong.”
“Mm… is he?”
“I knew you’d react like that again.”
As though she had predicted even that, Ravena poked Claire here and there.
The smile on her lips deepened further at the thought of teasing Claire.
“Hm? Who could it be? The person our Claire has fallen for?”
“F-fallen for? I told you, it’s not like that…”
Claire’s reaction was awkward no matter who looked at it.
Claire, who had no interest in anything except becoming stronger, always reacted like this to this topic.
From Ravena’s point of view, it was hard to resist teasing her.
“Isn’t it about time you told me? Can’t you at least give me a hint? Well? Is he handsome?”
“Mm…”
Normally, Claire would have fled the spot with her face bright red, insisting it wasn’t like that. But when she seemed to hesitate a little, Ravena seized the chance and pressed her even harder.
“How amazing is he, for you to be like this? Is he even more amazing than Professor Sirbert?”
After all, Claire barely reacted even to Sirbert, who had personally received the title of “Master” from the imperial family.
If someone could make that Claire react like this, just how extraordinary was he?
By now, Ravena was genuinely curious.
“How should I put it…”
Claire, too, began to seriously think about the goal she had set for herself.
Someone who punished the wicked with overwhelming power.
And yet, far from flaunting that power or acting arrogant, he was someone who would not even get angry at the children in the neighborhood.
In a word.
“He’s someone cool.”
He possessed power, but did not show it off.
And it was no ordinary power, either.
He had the power to call down lightning with a single glance, yet he did not boast of it.
Instead, he lowered himself and controlled his emotions.
Now, she knew that was no easy thing.
Especially after entering the academy, how many times had she felt the urge to be proud?
A talent clearly ahead of others.
Grades that always kept her among the leaders, even though she had started late.
The professors’ praise. The envy and jealousy of her rivals.
Whenever she felt the urge to strut, the reason she could shake her head was because she knew one person who was far too remarkable.
What an overwhelming powerhouse truly was.
What the composure of someone in such a position was like.
She had seen it right before her eyes.
“My goal is to become someone who won’t be ashamed to stand beside that person.”
Before she knew it, Hio had become Claire’s goal itself.
To resemble his composure. His strength.
So how could anyone else possibly catch her eye?
From the very beginning, she had already looked upon a place far too high.
“Ah… right. I see.”
It was Ravena who was flustered by Claire’s answer.
She had asked lightly, but the answer that came back was serious.
“Claire, you really do like that person, don’t you?”
“I told you it’s not like that!”
Ravena watched Claire shout with a bright red face, smiling all the while.
She felt a little envious of Claire for having such a firm goal, and at the same time, curiosity stirred in her as to who this person could be, for Claire—who had no interest whatsoever in anything else—to speak of him to such an extent.
And so, as the two of them bickered their way toward the combat practice grounds—
“I wondered where that lowborn stench was coming from.”
A girl with purple hair, wearing the same student uniform, blocked their path.
One hand was lightly pinching her nose.
“Lowly in status, with nothing to your names but those bodies of yours…”
Expensive jewels set into her accessories, elegant movements.
And with that long, flowing purple hair swaying—
“You don’t even know your place, yet you’re crawling desperately toward the professor.”
She looked just like a sweet potato.