"Leon!"
Lucas sprinted toward him—but before he could reach, a swarm of corrupted students blocked his path. Twisted, broken versions of their former selves, now nothing but puppets in Charlotte's sick game.
"Pree us!"
"Kull as!"
"Et herts!"
"Am en vain!"
All those curroupted Students were trying to say something.
Lucas froze for a moment. These were students. Their juniors.
He couldn't bring himself to strike them down. Not completely.
And if he unleashed his full power… PA-4 would collapse.
It was too risky. PA-4 wasn't just a laboratory—it was a foundation pillar of the entire school. If it broke down here, the whole building could come crashing down.
More corrupted entities charged at Alexia.
Her eyes narrowed. She moved fast—reading every twitch, every shift in their movement.
She ducked, twisted, stepped between them.
Then—
She closed her eyes.
Breathed in.
And launched herself forward, pointing her sword at them.
She severed many in half with clean, fluid strikes. But the moment their bodies hit the ground… they twitched—and started regenerating. Splitting into more, like hydra heads.
"Tch…!" Alexia clicked her tongue. "They're multiplying!"
"Kuakuakua! You think they'll go down that easy?"
Charlotte's voice echoed across the room, smug and entertained.
He casually sat on the edge of the massive test tube's control panel. One leg crossed over the other, his chin resting on his hand like he was watching a stage play.
"You're just dancing for my amusement now. Kuakuakua!"
He chuckled darkly.
One massive corrupted student had Leon by the head, its grotesque hand almost swallowing his skull whole.
It slammed Leon into a test tube—glass shattered. Then again. And again. Tossing him like a ragdoll, crashing him into walls, broken tubes, and metal.
Blood sprayed from Leon's mouth, dripping down his chin.
Alexia and Lucas saw it,
"Leon!"
They both tried to rush to him—but the corrupted swarm kept them pinned down, clawing, biting, blocking every step.
"I have to do something!" Lucas growled, sweat mixing with dirt on his face. "If this keeps going… that thing's gonna kill him!"
He tried to focus—tried to charge up—but the damn corrupted ones kept dragging him back, again and again.
Alexia's eyes flicked to Leon. That monster was holding him by the leg now, swinging him like a weapon.
If it doesn't stop... his leg's gonna tear off, she thought, but her face was looking calm, as nothing bothers her.
Before she could act—before Lucas could blast through—
The entity flung Leon again, but paused mid-throw. Something was still clinging to its hand.
Leon's leg.
It was torn clean off.
Lucas's eyes shot wide open, frozen in horror.
Alexia's narrowed. She pushed forward again—but more corrupted ones closed in around her.
"Kuakuakua! KUAKUAKUA!"
Charlotte exploded with laughter, slamming his hand on the control panel.
"His leg came off! His damn leg—KUAKUAKUA! How weak! This is too good! My chest—ugh, it hurts from laughing!"
"You bastard…"
Lucas muttered under his breath, fists trembling, trying to fight through the cursed wall of flesh between him and Leon.
Alexia and Lucas were pulled back into their fights, blades clashing and powers flaring—but it was endless. A swarm of corrupted students, twisted beyond recognition, kept coming at them. There was no end, no breathing room.
Meanwhile, the massive entity stalked toward Leon. Its body was a mess—grotesque, misshapen, pulsing with thick, dark energy. Hollow eyes locked onto Leon. A glowing core throbbed in its chest.
Leon's fingers twitched.
His eyes barely opened.
"Wh…where… where am I?" he mumbled, vision hazy and red. "Wh-what is this thing…? And… w-why does my leg feel so… warm?"
He forced his eyes down—and saw it.
His leg was gone. Torn off. Blood pouring out like a cracked pipe.
"…Ah." He exhaled, more tired than surprised. "So that's why."
He leaned his head back, half-conscious, barely breathing.
"I feel like… this happened before. But… I don't know when."
A faint smile touched his lips. "Isn't that what they call… déjà vu?"
His breathing slowed. His body limp.
"…Guess I'm gonna die, huh…?" he whispered. "But honestly… it's so peaceful. No noise… no pressure… no pain…"
In his mind, he saw himself—drifting deeper and deeper into a dark ocean.
No resistance.
No control.
Just sinking… slowly…
Arms, legs, everything… slipping away.
My life… did I even have a goal?
What was it all for… except this suffering?
Back in reality, the entity reached Leon.
It grabbed him again—one hand gripping his skull. The other clamped down on what was left of his lower body.
This time… the entity didn't plan to throw him.
It started pulling.
"STOP, YOU DAMN FUCKER!!"
Lucas roared. He tried to push through—but it was hopeless.
Over a hundred corrupted entities surrounded him. And every time one was cut down—it split into more. Two. Four. Eight. Endless.
Alexia slashed through five, ten, twenty—but her breathing was getting heavy. They were fighting a losing battle. They couldn't use their full power. Not here. Not in PA-4. It would destroy the entire building.
"KUAKUAKUA!"
Charlotte was dying of laughter, almost falling off the control panel, tears in his eyes.
"This is too damn funny! He's gonna get torn in half! KUAKUAKUA! I haven't had this much fun in years!!"
He clutched his stomach, wheezing from how hard he laughed.
"God, this kid! This pitiful, broken little thing! You guys really thought you stood a chance?!"
Leon's body was being stretched, bones cracking, blood dripping like a broken hourglass…
"O sacred light, bearer of judgment,
Erase the wicked, cleanse the unholy.
By the will of divinity, let impurity fade—
Let the heavens descend and smite all evil!"
"Divine Art: Lights of GOD!"
A golden magic circle lit up beneath the massive entity, glowing brighter and brighter until it roared to life. A blinding pillar of pure light shot upward, engulfing the beast in divine radiance. The corrupted monster let out a distorted screech—but it was too late.
Its grotesque body began to burn—disintegrating into particles of golden light, purified and erased from existence.
Leon's mangled body dropped from its grip, lifeless and limp—
—but before he could hit the ground, someone caught him mid-fall.
They gently laid him against a wall, careful with his injuries.
A second figure stepped forward, kneeling beside him and placing glowing hands over his wounds. Warm magic spread through Leon's body, starting to seal the worst of the damage.
"Yo, Leo!"
That voice… I know it. It's… it's someone I—
His eyes fluttered open, blurry and slow.
He blinked. Once. Twice.
"Hiroshi…? Kami…?"
Hiroshi grinned down at him, casual and calm despite the madness around them.
"You good?"
Leon stared for a second, then gave a weak laugh.
"What kinda dumbass question is that? Can't you see I lost my leg?"
Hiroshi chuckled. "Still got that mouth, huh?"
"I'll heal you," Kami said softly, her eyes focused, glowing slightly. "Just stay still."
Her hands moved carefully over his torn flesh. Light wrapped around the wound, sealing muscle, skin, and nerves with divine precision.
Leon leaned back against the wall, exhaling slowly.
"…Took you long enough," he muttered.
Charlotte's eyes widened.
The golden pillar faded, leaving only steam and silence where the massive entity once stood.
"Who the hell are you bastards?!"
He pointed a trembling finger toward them—then paused.
His eyes dropped. Right onto Kami's chest.
He quickly turned away, started whistling like nothing happened.
"I-I don't care. You can go on. It's fine. Totally fine."
Lucas, still fending off corrupted entities, stared in disbelief.
"Wait, who is that brat? He used Divine Art?!"
His voice was filled with confusion and awe. That kind of power… wasn't normal. Not for someone that young.
Hiroshi Nokawa.
Son of the legendary entity hunters—Takeshi and Asuka Nokawa. Warriors who once fought alongside the headmaster himself.
He inherited their will. Their legacy. Their power. A prodigy born with fire in his blood.
And that girl…
Alexia's eyes moved to Kami.
A clanless girl…?In their culture, being clanless is a curse… Yet she's smiling so brightly…
She's strong. In more ways than one.
Charlotte scoffed. "Tch. Brats…"
But Hiroshi just grinned.
He stood up, dusted off his hands, and suddenly—
FLASH
Started posing like he was in a sentai team.
"We?"
He pointed a thumb to his chest.
"I'm Hiroshi."
He pointed at Kami.
"She's Kami."
Then jabbed a thumb behind him at Leon.
"And that guy bleeding on the wall? That's Leon."
He smirked, glowing with confidence.
"We're the Students in this damn academy. Squad 12, First-Year Class B."
He cracked his knuckles.
"The ones who'll take down the Entity Gods someday."
Then grinned wider.
"And this… is our first and last meeting."
Before Charlotte could respond—
Hiroshi launched forward, a golden streak of energy bursting from beneath his feet as he charged straight at him.