The group spent their time together having fun. A few minor, hidden squabbles occurred, with Noah quietly annoying Sirius, but overall, they had a good time together until the bell rang, announcing the start of the afternoon session at 2:15 PM. At that point, everyone headed toward Sector 7, where the gymnasium was located. They didn't take the train because the trip only took a few minutes on foot — Sector 7 was right behind Sector 1, separated by only a few meters.
When they arrived, the hall was enormous, covering more than 300 meters of land. It was as tall as the buildings in Sector 11 but even wider. It was unfair to call this the smallest sector at the university. The gym was surrounded by 10 meters of blooming fields and tall trees. Wisteria flowers, in particular, hung down from the trees, making the trees look as though they had hair.
Inside, the gym was full of training equipment — weights, treadmills — and many students were there, some training individually, others attending Noah's class.
Sirius led the group to the second floor, where a large open area was divided into two sections. The first was reserved for boys, where there were ping pong tables, volleyball, handball, and basketball courts.and the second part was reserved for girls, they had everything the boys side had, In addition to that, the girls also had a huge swimming pool.
When Noah and his friends entered, Sirius led them to the locker rooms. They entered one of the rooms where lockers contained sports uniforms. Sirius pulled out his key, opened a locker, and tossed Noah a spare sports shirt — kept there for anyone who forgot their own. Noah took off his shirt to change into the sports uniform, but he wasn't spared from Sirius's teasing.
"I didn't know you had muscles like that. You definitely look better without a shirt," Sirius said with a smile, pointing at Noah's chest.
"I guess my body started changing because of the system. By the way, today's the last day of punishment, right?" Noah thought to himself silently as he looked at his muscles, then gave Sirius a suspicious look.
"Anyway, stop what you're doing — it's disgusting," Noah said, annoyed by Sirius's antics.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just admiring God's creation," Sirius joked.
Moments later, everyone exited the locker room. Noah then noticed a man among the bleachers — wearing black sportswear, looking to be in his thirties, with tired black eyes and spiky black hair like a porcupine. It was the gym teacher. He approached the waiting students.
"Welcome. I'm Professor Subaru Arima. Nice to meet you. We won't be doing much today since it's the first session of the year. You can do whatever you want. I'm only required to introduce myself today. Anyway, don't make too much noise. And if anyone dares to wake me up, I'll kill them," Professor Subaru Arima said, yawning — and he was serious. He waved goodbye to the students and went back to the bleachers where he lay down on his back and immediately fell asleep, leaving the students stunned.
"Damn..." muttered one student, surprised at the teacher's attitude.
"Can he really do that? Isn't he supposed to teach us something at least?" a girl asked, confused as whispers spread among the students.
"Who cares? Hey, Noah, let's do something fun," Sirius said excitedly, thrilled to have this free time to spend with Noah.
"Something fun? Fine. Just please don't make it gross," Noah said, feeling a little uncomfortable, knowing how weird Sirius could act sometimes.
"Don't worry about that. Here's the deal — you and Enel hide, and Neriah and I will search for you. If you two manage to stay hidden until the end of class, you win. What do you think?" Sirius asked with a wide, excited smile.
"...Alright, sounds like a good idea," Noah replied, realizing something quickly.
"Enel, let's hide," Noah added, grabbing Enel's hand and pulling him along as he looked for a hiding spot.
As soon as Noah and Enel left, Sirius's cheerful smile faded into a cold, serious expression.
"Now that Noah's gone, let's properly search for that bastard," Sirius said in a chilling tone that sent shivers down Neriah's spine.
"B-but... are you sure they're here?" Neriah asked, worried, his heart full of tension — not because of Sirius, but because of what Sirius might do to "that person."
"Yeah. I'm not totally sure, but during this period, inside this building, there's over 60% of the university's students. The chance of finding whoever did it isn't small," Sirius said, glancing sideways at Neriah with cold eyes.
"The actual chance is like 1%... Anyway, we should hurry before Noah and Enel get suspicious," Neriah said, feeling increasingly anxious but determined to find "that person."
"Oh, Neriah... you don't know it, but Noah already knows what we're trying to do. He's not as dumb as you think. He's hiding something from me... something I can't figure out yet..." Sirius thought to himself silently.
"Anyway, let's go find the person who made that graffiti," Sirius said, cutting off his thoughts, turning to Neriah with a chilling expression — the face of someone ready to kill.
Meanwhile, Noah and Enel had gotten far away from Sirius and Neriah, completely disappearing from sight.
"W-we've gone pretty far... where should we go?" Enel asked nervously, looking behind him, checking if Sirius and Neriah were following.
"Don't worry. We can go anywhere. Sirius and Neriah won't really be looking for us anyway," Noah said calmly, watching Enel's worried expression.
"Most likely, Sirius is searching for the person who made that graffiti while pretending to look for us. His real intentions were clear from the start... Well, it doesn't matter — it actually benefits me... Hm, should I feel guilty for using a friend? Probably not," Noah thought to himself, quickly finding the answer.
Noah and Enel wandered near the girls' side. Unlike them, the girls were actively training under the supervision of their teacher. Noah caught sight of the pool from the corner of his eye, where some girls were racing each other at incredible speed. Among them stood out a girl with long orange hair trailing behind her. Wearing a standard girls' sports swimsuit, she swam at a crazy speed, leading the race. She looked like a beautiful mermaid when she emerged from the water, droplets sparkling around her under the sun, giving her a dramatic glow.
"What is this, a main character introduction?" Noah muttered to himself, feeling ridiculous at the over-the-top atmosphere around her.
Elsewhere, outside the university grounds, east of the Empire, at a fast-food restaurant, a man stood in line. He had long, unkempt black hair reaching his back, wearing torn, tattered clothes covered by an even more ragged hunting coat that barely kept him warm. The line moved forward, and it was his turn.
"H-hello, sir... What would you like to order today?" the worker asked nervously, eyeing the man's clothes, sure he was just a beggar without money who had come hoping for food.
"I want a premium steak, cooked medium," the man said, his eyes full of anxiety and confusion.
"Um... sorry, sir, but we're out of steak today. Would you like something else?" the worker said, trying to avoid him as politely as possible.
"Huh? O-out of steak? Are you sure?" the man stuttered nervously, almost certain he had seen the person before him order the same thing and not be refused.
"Yes, I'm sure. Please move aside, there are others waiting," the worker said more firmly, a bit annoyed.
The man turned and saw the long line behind him, some people irritated, others indifferent.
"...Do you know who I am?" the man asked coldly.
"What?"
"I asked you — do you know who I am?" the man repeated, giving the worker a chilling stare that made him panic.
"S-should I know? Are you some important person or something?" the worker asked nervously, heart racing uncontrollably.
"No, I'm serious. Do you know who I am?" the man's voice shifted to a nervous, confused tone.
"W-what do you mean?" the worker asked, stepping back instinctively, feeling like he was in serious danger — like he should run, but his body wouldn't move.
"Do you know who I am? I forgot who I am! I don't know who I am!" the man shouted suddenly, grabbing the worker by the neck and lifting him off the ground. Everyone in the restaurant froze in shock.
"S-sir! P-please! Let-go of me!" the worker gasped, his voice weak as his face turned purple from lack of oxygen.
"Who am I? Tell me! Who am I?! What am I? What am I? WHAT AM I?!" the man screamed, squeezing tighter and tighter.
Several men jumped at him, trying to pull him off. One smashed a glass bottle over his head; another punched him; another grabbed his arm trying to pull him away — but the man didn't budge an inch, totally unfazed, focused entirely on the choking worker.
"Who am I? What am I? What am I... Die!" the man said, breaking the worker's neck in one brutal motion and throwing his lifeless body to the ground.
"H-holy shit! Everyone run!!" one man yelled, trying to grab the attacker — but everyone in the restaurant screamed in terror. However, no one could escape: the doors wouldn't open, and the windows were unbreakable. They were trapped inside with the madman.
"...Die!" the man said.
Outside the restaurant, a teenage boy — about eighteen years old, with black hair, wearing a school uniform — was listening to music through his earbuds. He noticed he couldn't see through the restaurant's glass anymore. Curious, he walked closer — and suddenly saw the glass splattered with blood from the inside.
"H-holy shit! What the hell?!" he screamed in fear and panic.
At that moment, the door of the restaurant swung open, and the beggar man stepped out. His clothes were stained with blood, and even his face was completely smeared. He smiled at the boy with a terrifying grin, revealing sharp fangs tainted with blood, making the boy's eyes fill with tears and his heart flood with terror.
"P-Please...n-no!" the boy cried as he wept uncontrollably from fear, even wetting his pants.
"Who am I?" the beggar asked.
At the university, in Sector 1, inside one of the rooms in the university building — specifically the Student Council Room — the Vice President was working alone on some paperwork at the desk.
She had short, pale purple hair and bright violet eyes that gleamed under the sunlight shining through the window. She wore the university uniform, except she had on a slightly short skirt.
Then, one of the students entered — the Treasurer. He was short, almost like a small child, with pure white hair and gray eyes, and he wore black earrings.
"Hmm, Aria, you're still working even now? You're really diligent," the boy said in a mocking tone, his smile irritating Aria.
"What do you want, Kieran?" Aria asked, slightly annoyed by Kieran's arrogant behavior.
"Have you heard about the new student?" Kieran asked as he approached Aria's desk.
"Yeah, I've heard about him. The undeserving one, the fake, right?" Aria replied, her tone slightly bitter.
"You just made up those names on the spot... but it seems you know him anyway. What was his name? I think it was Noah Grace," Kieran said, sitting casually on Aria's desk as he tried to recall.
At that moment, Aria's pen froze for a second as she processed what Kieran had just said.
"What did you say...? Noah Grace?!" Aria said, her voice sounding slightly fearful and deeply anxious.
"Y-Yeah, that's his name. Do you know him?" Kieran asked, a little concerned by Aria's sudden reaction.
"Damn it, are you kidding me! After escaping from that place, he shows up here, of all places?!" Aria thought to herself, sinking into a deep fear, biting her finger anxiously.
"That monster!..." Aria whispered in terror and extreme confusion.