Chapter 112

A few hours after the incident occurred.

“So, you said you are the new scholarship officer?”

“That’s right. Miss Irene.”

After being rescued with my friend’s help, I suddenly appeared at the Inspection Bureau with someone claiming to be the scholarship officer. I had heard of the position, but this was my first time seeing one in person.

“Is there anything else you need?”

“I’m fine. I just used too much magical power in a short period and collapsed. Can I leave now?”

“No, Miss Irene. You need to rest for a few more days. If you need anything, just call.”

And she was puzzled. It was the first time she was meeting this person today, so why was he being so kind to her? As it turned out, she hadn’t even introduced herself, yet he seemed to know who she was. Even the way he looked at her felt somewhat oppressive.

“We will soon find out who attacked you. I will do my best to help you.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

Irene closed her eyes for a moment. The ones who attacked her? She didn’t want to be certain, but some negative possibilities floated in her mind.

‘Surely, it can’t be…’

At that moment, the scholarship officer asked a question.

“Who exactly were those people?”

“Those people?”

“I mean the ones who were with you, Miss Irene. Do you know who they were?”

Ah, he must be referring to Violet.

Hearing the scholarship officer’s words, Irene recalled the request Violet had made before coming here.

-Irene! Just listen! If anyone asks about us, say it like this!

She had conveyed some instructions through the communicator that Violet had plugged into her ear.

Irene thought of her friend’s situation.

‘It could be troublesome if she gets questioned.’

Violet was a former test subject from the research lab. More than anything, her ability was extremely useful, even in her own opinion.

She wondered whether she could really trust this young man who introduced himself as a scholarship officer. He was being too friendly, almost like someone who knew her, which felt suspicious. Regardless of the situation, she couldn’t put her friend in danger.

“Do you know who they are?”

Irene decided to lie to hide her friend. Remembering the instructions from the communicator, she opened her mouth.

“Those people? They are a secret security team my father prepared in advance.”

“A security team?”

The scholarship officer’s eyes seemed intrigued.

What name did Violet say to use? She combined several requests and information that her friend had given her to come up with an answer that would pass muster.

“…They call themselves the Ariel Group.”

Violet’s hasty alias had transformed into a suspicious armed organization.

“The Ariel Group?”

“Yes. I’ve heard about them for quite some time, but this is the first time I’m seeing one in person.”

“Is that so…”

After pausing to think for a moment, the scholarship officer conveyed a few more instructions and then left the room.

Once outside, he sighed. Seijis felt a bit flustered.

‘Though I’m glad I saved Irene, something’s off.’

This was different from what he knew. Just because he was aware of some future events didn’t mean he knew everything. Especially since he wasn’t even sure what had happened five years ago.

In fact, at this point, he wasn’t even a scholarship officer yet. His knowledge was merely from the investigation he conducted before he came back in time.

He had ended up sitting here five years earlier as a result of his knowledge of the future and some clever tricks.

‘The future I know has changed a lot. Why is that?’

Originally, the abduction incident of Irene Solstice wouldn’t happen for a few weeks from now.

The time and place were also different. It was supposed to take place at midnight near the western district. The subject of the abduction and the reason behind it remained unknown. She had just managed to escape from a place of confinement right after the academy collapsed due to an unidentified incident.

Most importantly, she hadn’t been very forthcoming about what had happened back then. It was something he could only hear due to their close relationship.

The current situation was different. The abduction attempt happened in broad daylight right in front of her house. The process itself had also changed. A shootout erupted in the center of the city, and the outcome was even different.

‘Could it be that my existence has influenced the time that was supposed to happen?’

He recalled concepts of alternate histories, time travel, and time paradoxes.

‘The Ariel Group? I’ve never heard of such a thing. If it existed, she wouldn’t have been abducted in the first place.’

Seijis reviewed the documents he had seen a moment ago. Inside the tablet’s monitor were surveillance camera feeds from the city and organized reports. It depicted the situation during the shootout.

He examined scenes where over a hundred armed soldiers appeared amidst the smoke.

They were fighting against the armed organization that was trying to kidnap Irene, which vanished back into the smoke when he arrived.

An armed organization in black attire that wasn’t hesitant to use explosives.

They appeared anytime and anywhere.

They were presumed to have teleportation abilities and used suppressive devices. Their physiques all seemed similar. Were they a clone army?

Were they connected to the federal army? There was a possibility that those nefarious bureaucrats got involved. The four main clans? They maintained a cooperative relationship for their own righteous cause but contended for dominance behind the scenes. They could have intervened.

Or perhaps there were other secret societies involved.

Suddenly, one possibility came to his mind.

‘Could it be the Obsidian Legion? I hope it’s not the Infinite Witch…’

Seijis compared and analyzed the figure in his nightmares with the one on-screen.

He took a calm breath and sorted through his thoughts.

‘No, it’s not impossible, but… it’s definitely not a witch.’

Witch Violet’s height, as he remembered, was around 180 cm, comparable to an adult male. However, the figure on-screen was shorter, about 150 to 155 cm.

‘And Violet despised firearms.’

In contrast to the Obsidian Legion, which actively utilized firearms and advanced weaponry, the Infinite Witch was a distinctly different entity. She liked using explosives but despised long-range weapons. Witches preferred close combat and only trusted their physical abilities.

The ones Irene introduced as the Ariel Group were different. They actively deployed a multitude of firearms and heavy weaponry.

‘The agents of the Obsidian Legion detest clans and corporations. Irene would be no exception.’

However, according to eyewitness accounts, although their methods seemed somewhat high-handed and rough, they had managed to evacuate civilians and police. A true witch would have attacked anyone.

Moreover, there was no reason for a witch to be active at this point in time. As far as he knew, witches had only shown up around the time he started working as a scholarship officer.

‘Is there a different organization I don’t know about?’

It was suspicious. Yet, he had too many pressing matters to handle at the moment.

‘Still, I’ve been neglecting the other students. I need to start making contact soon.’

Seijis looked back toward the room. Until now, he had focused on increasing his own power, but it seemed like it was time to reconnect with people he hadn’t seen.

*

Separately from Seijis’s concerns, his actions were largely unrelated to the incident and its causes. Though, his presence had twisted the course of the future considerably.

This incident arose from a butterfly effect triggered by a girl with blond hair and red eyes.

Just before the kidnapping attempt occurred, Violet had attacked the A13 Research Lab within the Chloris Great Forest, causing a troublesome butterfly effect. During a brief skirmish with Croscelle, Violet had used the Hand of Destiny and actively engaged in destruction inside the facility. The lab’s downfall, which should have lasted a few more months, was hastened.

This caused two main problems.

First, the evacuation of the A13 Research Lab led to considerable chaos. Most of the researchers and data that had survived the monster escape were vaporized by explosives. The disaster caused by the enigmatic intruder claiming to be an Obsidian Legion agent was greater than anticipated.

The clan was in shock. The Magnavis Group quickly reviewed their facilities and urgently bolstered security. The political turmoil involved and the aftermath pushed their original tasks to the backburner.

Furthermore, Croscelle’s actions, which had originally been part of Irene’s abduction, were affected as well. Though the injuries she sustained were minor, they somewhat restricted her movements.

As a result, the situation progressed on an unexpected trajectory. Originally, the kidnapping plot meant to unfold weeks later was left incomplete, and Irene’s impatient uncle hastily initiated the grand undertaking. The result was a disaster.

The events surrounding the Mid-Central 12th Street shootout unfolded as such. But accepting the already occurred outcome as it was is challenging, even for a mature adult.

Thus, during the discussion with Rigel, Julius openly expressed his mocking attitude.

“Well done. Very well done. Every media outlet in Rustroom is having a blast. What on earth are you thinking?”

He felt a throbbing headache.

‘I told you to wait because there were security problems to deal with, and yet you went ahead and acted without permission!’

In an office of Helios where discussions between the two clans took place, the atmosphere was thick with discomfort.

On one side of the room, a TV monitor displayed live news coverage of the “Mid-Central 12th Street Shootout.” Some outlets even went so far as to use the term “terrorism” while discussing the incident.

‘Who would conduct a kidnapping in broad daylight?’

What was supposed to be a night operation, carried out secretly, had morphed into a war employing mercenaries, drones, and the clan’s secret weapons.

‘They mobilized heavily armed mercenaries and their clan’s troops for a suicide drone attack in the middle of the city, and it failed?’

The problem stemmed from the sudden assault of an unidentified strike team, yet considering how swiftly the Inspection Bureau moved, it was totally plausible that their operations had failed.

“Goodness, who assaults in broad daylight?”

“It seems you haven’t learned much about tactics in your youth. Typically, in such scenarios, you should look for unexpected openings. If you attack in broad daylight, everyone would attribute it to terrorists, wouldn’t they?”

“You should have just waited a bit longer! Although circumstances delayed things, we were preparing too.”

“No, there’s no time for that! You know that too!”

Whatever Julius said, Rigel continued to grumble without taking responsibility for his own faults. Watching him, Julius’s expression tightened further. The masked employees standing behind him also appeared uneasy.

They followed orders from their superiors but wondered why they were supporting such a foolish man. He didn’t particularly care for Irene, but this person was utterly pitiful compared to her.

‘Well, if such an idiot becomes the leader of Helios, it would be easier to manipulate him. Is that the intention of the higher-ups?’

Rigel crossed his arms, anger swirling within him.

“This is all your fault!”

It wasn’t just Julius who was angry. Rigel was furious for having missed the meat in front of him.

Irene had fallen into the hands of the scholarship officer from the Inspection Bureau. Most of those involved in this operation were mercenaries. Although the hunters were officially part of Helios, they were operating unofficially. Though it was a strong suspicion, there wasn’t any concrete evidence, allowing them to slip through smoothly. However, all the costs and resources spent had vanished into thin air.

“Mr. Rigel, we’ve clearly offered you advice. We consulted, too. We even provided assets from the group. Do you know how expensive that Stregonics is?”

The Stregonics they provided was a weapon still in the research and development phase. If they had managed to capture that reckless girl, it would have aided in their research. By analyzing and applying her unique abilities, they could have achieved far more powerful durability and magical capacity.

But they had failed.

“You Magnavis mages always just bluff! That tin can! Why did you give it to me? It was useless!”

“Hey, Mr. Rigel. You’re the one who messed things up!”

Julius was dumbfounded. If the Magnavis mages and developers had heard Rigel, they would have clobbered his head with a wrench.

“See, I didn’t trust that tin can in the first place!”

Contrary to his claim, the Stregonics had sufficiently lived up to its value. Although she was fatigued, they had almost subdued Irene. Regardless of whether the abduction was successful, the data collected during the raid would prove to be useful.

After he had been infuriated for a while, Rigel seemed to have collected himself and spoke in a somewhat calmer tone.

“Alright. Well, it can’t be helped. I suppose I have some faults, but I need more support.”

“Understood. Then, we’ll see you next time.”

The Magnavis employees quickly exited. Julius turned to the masked man beside him.

“So, Croscelle. What do you think?”

“He’s more foolish than I anticipated.”

Currently, Croscelle had stepped out from school to accompany Julius. Originally, he was one of the people who was supposed to subdue Irene. A laugh could be heard muffled behind his mask.

“True, but you need to reflect too. Why couldn’t you stop those guys last time?”

“That’s…”

“The grand undertaking is imminent. Get your act together.”

Hearing Julius’s admonition, Croscelle sealed his lips. Silence fell.

They both had headaches. Although an accident caused by the foolishness of someone vying to be Helios’s next leader had already occurred, the real problem lay with the other parties involved.

The unidentified black-armed organization that had derailed their efforts.

“The report said that the intruder claimed to be the Obsidian Legion, right?”

“I heard it clearly. They asserted it with their own mouth.”

After saying this, a thought struck Croscelle’s mind.

‘Could this person be the same as those who assaulted the lab earlier.’

Everything was uncertain.

“One the things are completed, you should come to the clan. Doing just student council president seems to waste your talents.”

“Understood.”

To them, everything was a mystery.

One thing was certain. They had to block that unidentified enemy for the grand undertaking.

*

After all the events had concluded, the Violets were conducting a post-mortem discussion.

“The scholarship officer showed up there!”

“We almost had our escape plan foiled. We need a vehicle!”

“Why did the Stregonics show up there? Who attacked Irene?”

Though they had nearly won this battle, the Violets realized their own shortcomings. Moreover, they had failed to capture a prisoner. At this rate, their friend might be attacked again.

“I didn’t notice it during the fight, but I think we need to consider our means of escape as well.”

As they chatted for a while, the discussion drifted to absurd topics.

“How do we deal with flying enemies?”

“If only we had flying machines!”

If there had been helicopters or planes, they could’ve quickly fled with Irene.

Everyone nodded in agreement. When the Violets fought among themselves, they could just reverse it, but now that their friends or others were involved, it created a messy problem. Seeing the scholarship officer flying around or the drones from this event elicited many thoughts.

After ten minutes of a fierce marathon meeting, the Violets came to one important realization.

The problem was in the sky.