"Another entire city? Wiped off of the map completely?" The man seated at his desk asked incredulously. His words were directed at the tense assistant in front of him who had brought these new reports that lay along the man's desk. He nodded his head solemnly at the question, remaining silent, and allowing the man to continue to review the reports that covered his desk. And none of them were good at all. They all detailed the same phenomenon, something completely inexplicable no matter how you tried to look at it or analyze it.
All around the world, tiny rural towns in backcountry areas were being completely taken off the map. Destroyed without a single trace. No survivors. No surviving structures, buildings, animals, or any kind of wildlife. Like pressing control-alt-delete, everything in the area was completely wiped from existence, it seemed. The only thing left in each of those areas was ashes. Completely grayed-out land. These reports had been steadily rising in the past few weeks, but they'd increased in frequency these past few days. And there was absolutely nobody that could understand or explain the phenomena that caused this.
The man sitting at his desk, a large and burly man with glasses that framed his face, was the mages' association. An organization that managed all things mage-related. They were the ones that handled any problems that arose in mage society. They were responsible for the Magic Knights, and they were essentially like a government branch made specifically for magicians. And in the past few weeks, this organization has been the busiest they have ever been. At first, their problems only lie in maintaining peace and balance between the seven continents while also monitoring the relation between mages and non-mages.
But in the span of only a week, the number of responsibilities and things they had to worry about had increased tenfold. It started with the attack that was now known as the spark, a worldwide, large-scale series of attacks initiated by the organization known as the Fangless Python. The attacks were sudden, and within a few hours of the day, they had to focus on defense, rescue, and evacuation. After the attacks, they were faced with massive backlash and pressure from society, blaming them for the reason these attacks had happened in the first place.
What made the situation worse was the Fangless Python's artful manipulation of the situation, using public outcry, panic, and confusion to set themselves up as a sort of heroic rebellion group that stood for the ideals and safety of non-mages. Even though they initiated these attacks, they framed mages and got away with that. That wasn't even the worst of it. Their propaganda led to the formation of rebellion groups all around the world, and then the mages' association had its hands full with quelling rebellions before they got too big. Those rebellions shifted into wide-scale riots with massive casualty counts and brutal videos that only worsened the reputation of mages.
Along with that, there was a massive problem going on with sudden disappearance. People all around the world were suddenly vanishing without a trace. It was a case that completely eluded them, and they had no leads as to the culprit. The same missing people would turn up a few days later, confused and scared, and it seemed the person behind this was wiping their memories. It was clearly caused by a mage, and it only served to be a massive blow to the morale of those working to try and keep things under control.
On top of all of those problems, as if to act like the cherry on top, towns were literally being wiped off the map with no trace. The head of the mages association just stared at the stacks of reports in front of him and gripped his hair tightly, as if he would start pulling it out at any moment. He then turned up to look at the assistant who had brought him this news.
"Tell me, Marcus. What do we know about these instances so far? All of the information you've collected so far, please." His voice was strained, and he spoke every word through gritted teeth. It was clear from his tone and the eyebags under his eyes that he was tired and mentally drained. However, as the head of the mages association, if he didn't keep his head up, everything would collapse. That was the responsibility of a leader.
Marcus cleared his throat before tapping his wristwatch twice to display a hologram of notes he had on the case. Any normal report would usually have a document the length of a novella; however, this case only featured a measly 3 pages. Trying to ignore the stare of disappointment he was getting, Marcus began to speak.
"Currently, 12 towns have been confirmed to have been hit by this phenomenon. They are spread out all throughout the world, stretching all the way from Europe to North America and reaching out to Asia and even Oceania. What we do know is that it's only targeted small, back-country towns with small populations. Because of that, it's been easy to conceal from the public for the moment; however, family members are beginning to ask questions. If we don't come up with answers soon, we'll be in trouble."
"As if we aren't already in trouble with literally everything else!" The head of the mages association slammed his fist into the desk with such force the entire building around them shook violently. "Continue."
"It has the same effect everywhere. The entire area is reduced to nothing but ashes. We've documented no cases of survivors. Judging by the time frames that the ashes were found, we can assume that all of these incidents occurred during broad daylight. Currently, surveillance has been placed in towns nearing areas that have been hit, but besides the fact that it leaves behind no witnesses, we have no clues as to what is causing it. Some of our best deceivers theorize that it is some sort of supernatural occurrence beyond our realm of imagination."
The head of the mages association sat at his desk in silence for a long moment, just staring at Marcus. "So. Towns are being reduced to ash all around the world. People are dying, and entire areas are being deforested and removed of all wildlife in the blink of an eye. And our best answer is that ghosts are behind it?" The situation was a bit more nuanced than that, but for all intents and purposes, he had hit the nail on the head with that summary. Simply shaking his head, the man turned around in his chair and stared at the wall behind him, which was cracked and shattered and filled with holes the size of a fist.
Marcus stood in silence. He had nothing to say.
"Where's Credo?" Call him in here right this moment." He said simply. Despite how calm his voice was, the man was on the verge of screaming his heart out and beginning to rip out his graying hairs. Credo was, without a doubt, his most trusted assistant. The man held the position of vice president of the Mages Association, and whenever Marcus was absent, he would seamlessly step into the role of head. He was one of the most reliable members of the mages association, and his presence was one of the only reasons that the man hadn't drowned in all of the work that he had.
"About that."
As soon as he heard those words, the head of the mages association froze in his seat. About that? Anything but a yes to a simple request was unacceptable. It meant that his request could not be completed. And that wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all. Wheeling around sharply, he turned to stare at Marcus with eyes that would hopefully compel him to rethink his next words. Marcus met that gaze and shivered. He still spoke, and unfortunately, the answer he gave was not the one the man sitting in front of him wanted to hear in that moment.
"Credo has resigned from his position."
Those words that Marcus spoke didn't register in the man's ears for a bit. For a long moment, he thought that he was just hearing things, and that was it. He thought that there was absolutely no way what he just heard could have been true in any capacity. He didn't want to believe it.
"Huh?" When he finally snapped out of his shock to say something, the words were just a verbal expression of how caught off guard he truly was. He couldn't believe what he was hearing at all. He just couldn't. His right-hand man, the one person he could rely on to share the workload and to share the responsibility, had resigned. It felt like someone had taken a blade and stabbed it straight through. "Resigned? For what reason? Why? Credo was not the type to fold under pressure. There's no way he quit because he felt he couldn't handle the workload.
Marcus nodded his agreement at that statement. "That's not the reason. At least according to Credo, the workload and pressure had nothing to do with why he resigned."
"Then why? Why would he resign from a position that pays so well and gives him so much power if it wasn't for the workload or pressure of it?" He couldn't understand.
Marcus cleared his throat and gave the answer. "Well, in the resignation letter he placed, it states that the reason he left was because the time was right. And,"
Marcus handed the letter of resignation over.
"That he'd return when the time is right. And when he did return, it would be to restore 'balance'."
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The footsteps got louder and louder until finally, a figure emerged from the glass skywalk that led into the training arena. As soon as he stepped through, all eyes in the area turned around to face him. Even with hundreds of pairs of eyes all staring him down, the figure did not stumble in his stride. He walked confidently, without sparing a single glance at his surroundings. As if he didn't need to bother himself with looking around and analyzing the situation.
He was tall and well built. Even from where I was standing, I could see his strongly built muscles. He wore an all-white outfit. White pants, a white shirt, and a white coat fitted with gold jewelry on it. The wind blew, causing his coat to rise and flutter in the air. He had light skin and fiery red hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. He had clear skin, only marred by a few scars and slashes near his eyes. He also had an eyepatch covering his left eye, where the marks of a long vertical slash travelled the length of his face.
He had an imposing aura, and one could tell from the way he walked and carried himself that he was someone who had a high status. For the first time in a while, silent conversations began to flare up throughout the top floor of the training ground. The topic of conversation was none other than the man standing in the center of the training field, in the spot that Himitsu used to. As those conversations broke out, Credo began to slowly look around the training arena. His one good eye traced its way through the crowd.
As he analyzed us, and we him, I heard the sound of someone pushing through the crowd. Next to me, Yuri Hamani appeared. "I was suspicious of all of the rumors, but looking at him now, he definitely lives up to the 'military general' people described him to be.
I nodded. I had to agree. The man standing in the center of the training arena gave off the kind of vibe that you'd expect from someone who had genuine combat experience. He seemed tough and unbreakable. "Do you know anything about him? Like where he came from?" I asked
Yuri nodded. "The President had told me. He was the vice president of the mages association."
I nearly gasped, and next to me, Erika and Nova actually did. Hikaru didn't react, as if the information was old news to her. Vice President of the Mages Association was a position that held the same gravitas as headmaster. It was a position of power so high that the normal person would never imagine actually seeing them. In this case, the fact rang even more true. The Mages Association's members were not very well known to the public, so seeing the vice president appear in front of us was understandably shocking.
"Hold on, you said was?" Masayoshi asked, pointing out Yuri's choice of words.
Yuri nodded. "According to Ms. Suijin, he resigned from his position as the vice president to work as a teacher here. She said, Not even the headmaster, who was responsible for hiring him, knew the reason why." I took note of how Yuri was referring to Suijin with honorifics. While Yuri used to treat Suijin like royalty before, he always called her by her first name. But now, he didn't even do that. It was something I'd have to talk with him about later.
I turned my gaze back to Credo, shocked. The position of vice president of the mages association not only came with good pay, but it also came with having lots of power and high standing as well as good protection. Even if the workload was large, no one would willingly give up a position like that. That didn't even mention how long it would take to climb so high. And yet this nutjob standing in front of us had given up that position to work as a teacher, no less.
I didn't know what to think. And nobody else knew what to think either. Next to me, Hikaru tapped on my shoulder, gesturing for me to lean down so she could whisper something. I complied, and then she told me,
"I talked with some first years who had his class before us. They said that when he was asked why he resigned from his position as vice president, he said that it was in order to help prepare us. When asked for what, he didn't respond."
Taking what Hikaru said into account, this guy was more than just a bit eccentric. Was he actually crazy? Or was there more to it? Quitting your job as one of the most powerful people in the world in order to 'prepare' some random students for something. That makes absolutely no sense at all. I was seriously starting to believe that this guy was just crazy. As I came to that conclusion, Credo opened his mouth and spoke for the first time.
"You guys are the students who fought against and repelled the Fangless Python invasion of Theta?" His voice was calm, and he didn't even need to use mana to amplify it because it was just that quiet.
The question he opened with was treated like a rhetorical one, and no one answered him. He didn't show any reaction to that and instead turned to look around once more.
"I don't know whether I should be impressed with you guys or disappointed in the Fangless Python." Another statement met with silence. "In total, there were over 1000 students and staff within the barrier of Theta Magic Academy during the start of the attack. After the barrier was hijacked and the attack commenced, over 300 students ended up injured or dead. Another hundred students and staff members were left incapacitated after being trapped within an ability belonging to one of the attackers. Along with the Fangless Python, 5 separate individuals of an unknown affiliation also appeared, locking down sections of the school. Each of them possessed unique abilities beyond the scope of regular magical abilities that were explained to be something called delusions. To put it simply, you guys were put into a real-life, real-stakes battle situation....And you failed. Horribly."
A collective gasp broke out through the entire student body gathered around it. Nobody could believe what Credo had just said. He had given a full recap of the battle at Theta and then proceeded to insult every single student gathered around. He had the guile to throw out harsh words of criticism. Nobody knew how to react.
"Theta Magic Academy is a war academy. Its purpose is to bring up students that could serve as effective Magic Knights in combat. Against a force made up of mostly non-mages and only 5 enemies capable of using truly dangerous magic, you guys were nearly brought to your knees. No battle coordination, no preparation, just sloppiness. For an academy that is known as one of the Grand Magic Academies. I'm disappointed."
At first I wanted to ask how the hell this guy had so much information on the battle, when I realized he was literally the vice president of the Mages Association. Of course he had access to trivial information like this. The real question should be what his goal was here. He was harshly ripping into us for not being prepared for a sudden sneak attack on the magic academy. He was criticizing teenagers that had not yet been truly trained for battle, like they were experienced veterans. I'm sure everyone was already beating themselves up, knowing they could have done better. Even I was. But that didn't stop me from thinking that his words were a little harsh.
Credo continued. "Is it fair for me to say you guys weren't truly prepared to see what real battle looked like?" Nobody responded. "As I thought. Even now, all of you are still traumatized. Shocked. Fearful of what you saw. I'm going to be blunt with you. Throw those feelings away."
More gasps and shocked cries. This time, a girl I knew from my class called Alice spoke up, unable to handle Credo's harsh words. "That isn't fair to say at all! Everyone here saw brutal things! They saw people ripped apart and die in front of them! They were scared! And despite that, we all fought bravely and pushed through in order to survive!"
"Fighting is the bare minimum expected from soldiers." Credo's voice was cold. Unemotional. A complete contrast to Alice, who sounded angry and hurt. "Tell me this: if a doctor currently completing their residency was completely unprepared to handle a medical situation,. Let's let it develop and worsen before finally pulling themselves together and just barely saving a life, and then they told you that it wasn't fair to them because they were scared and under pressure. Would you be able to accept that answer?"
"Just like in your example, everyone makes mistakes! But unlike doctors in residency, we were students! Unprepared at that!" Alice fired back.
"Unprepared. Does that mean your teachers failed to adequately train you for this? For example, Himitsu. By your logic, he's the one to blame for your unpreparedness."
"No way! It was only because of his sacrifice and his efforts that we were able to push through and win in the first place! Without his leadership and his teaching, even more of us would be dead right now!" This was Erika. She had a fiery passion in her words, and it made sense. She had been a front-row witness to Himitsu's sacrifice.
"That only tells me if he had done his job correctly and prepared you guys, there would be no need for sacrifice. If he had held the standards that should be met by a war academy, this attack wouldn't have claimed so many lives. People wouldn't be dead, hospitalized, or in mysterious comas induced by unknown factors. He died because he was unprepared. And his failure to prepare you ended up killing even more people. Had he done his job, there would be no need to sacrifice anybody."
Credo's cold voice silenced everybody with that comment. Mostly because nobody believed that he would actually say that. He viciously ripped apart the students' rebuttals and claims, even going as far as to say that it was the fault of Himitsu. He went so far as to disrespect Himitsu's sacrifice, saying words as cold as 'If he had done his job, he wouldn't have needed to sacrifice himself'."
"B-but that's completely unfair! To blame a dead man for the death of others in a situation where everybody did their best! That's not fair. That's not just or right at all!" A student shouted in between sobs. Even more students began to speak up, giving similar ideas and thoughts.
"That's right, everyone did their best with what they had!"
"There's no point in finding someone to blame for the tragedy that the Fangless Python was responsible for!"
"Why should we even listen to you! You're a random!"
"What right do you have to disrespect the death and efforts of others?"
But as they spoke, I knew the sentiments were naive, and I knew the exact sort of response that Credo was going to give.
"And that's the truth behind the real world. The one you guys saw as a result of that battle, and the one that you all refuse to believe. That is the truth behind life. Nothing is just, and nothing is fair. That doesn't exist in real life. The only thing that does is brutality. Everything else—equality, justice, fairness—it's all idealism. Naive idealism that has no place in a world of war." With those few words, Credo had crushed the spirit of everyone. With brutally harsh truths that no one could rebut and an overall message that preached of the unfairness of real life, he completely crushed any arguments.
Looking around, he nodded. "Devastated. Hurt. Crushed spirits. That is how the unfairness of life will leave you at every twist and turn, without a doubt. You will be unprepared. Not ready for what happens next." As he spoke, a bad feeling dawned on me. Shivers rushed up my spine. I began to look around, only to see that a barrier had surrounded us once again. No escape. Everyone else realized it too. Slowly, shouts and screams descended upon the students.
This was just like the Fangless Pythons' attack. Above, the sun was blocked out in an eclipse by a purple moon.
"Left in a situation where you're caught off guard and completely unprepared. How will you react? How will you adapt? Or will you not adapt and fail?" Credo continued to speak. Cryptically. "That is your first test. Rise and adapt, or fail and die. Those are your options."
And with a snap of his finger, an explosion ruptured the air, and hell descended upon the training arena.