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I saw it coming.
You know, the monster—the chaos—the inevitable moment when you realize you're way too under-leveled for this boss fight. Yeah. That exact moment.
There's Elena. Pretty, proud, and already bleeding like she's got some grand plan to survive this.
Elin's doing her best to look brave, but if you notice how her hands are shaking while she patches herself up... yeah. Not convincing.
Aren? Halfway to losing it, still pretending he's not.
And me? I'm supposed to be the clever one. The guy who sees the situation. Well, congratulations—I see it. The whole damn thing.
I thought I had it under control. I've lived worse.
But I forgot the cruel truth:
Knowing the future means nothing if you're too weak to change it.
Fighting humans was one thing.
Fighting monsters? That's a whole different thing.
So here's the spoiler:
We're not going to win.
Best case? The academy staff shows up just in time to scrape what's left of us off the floor.
Worst case? I've read this part before. Literally. This exact scenario plays out in the novel that feels more real than this nightmare.
Elin dies.
Aren dies.
Elena? She survives. Barely.
S-rank healers drag her back, but… when she wakes up, she's not Elena anymore.
There's a demon behind her eyes now. Waiting.
Great, right?
Lucky me. I'm on the team marching straight into this mess.
So guess what?
I die here too.
F**k this.
What kind of sick joke is this?
It's that twisted, bitter kind of funny—you know, the kind that makes you laugh so you don't scream.
I didn't even want to be in this exam.
Thought I'd just get a decent score, maybe bunk with the main characters, keep an eye on them from the sidelines.
But nope.
Turns out this is my character development arc.
How original.
Funny thing is—the monster doesn't care about character development.
I glance at Elena. She still clings to hope—thinks if we just hold out, someone will show up.
I feel bad for her. She's destined to die either way.
The demon inside her will kill her for sure, even if she survives this fight.
She doesn't know the ending waiting for her.
But I do.
And for the first time, I wish I didn't.
I have to save her—and somehow, save myself and the other two with me.
Then it hits.
> [[The Constellation "The Fallen Prince of the Lunar Throne" offers you a survival chance.]]
> [[The Constellation "The Fallen Prince of the Lunar Throne" wants to make this situation more entertaining.]]
Right. The deus ex machina. Because why not?
Hahaha.
What a funny situation. Pathetic, really.
You'd better believe you're going to pay for this "entertainment" with your life.
[[You have received a Quest: Deus ex Machina.]]
Description?
The Fallen Prince decides to intervene—giving you a slim chance to survive, if you're willing to pay the cost.
Condition?
You're trapped inside a dome of lunar light. No outside help. You, your team, and the monster—locked in together.
Reward?
You get a moment. Thirty minutes of breathing room while the monster is frozen. Everyone heals.
Failure Penalty?
Everyone dies. ]]
Yeah. Sounds fair.
How can something be so cruelly precise?
Our chances? Basically zero… unless I accept the quest.
Even if I accept this twisted deal, survival is a long shot.
Maybe—maybe—if I can convince the others to actually fight like their lives depend on it.
But what do I do?
Knowing what's coming, knowing the stakes?
My hands tremble.
My body burns with anxiety—not fear of death. Been there. Done that.
I know how it feels.
"Princess Elena, did you see the quest?" I ask quietly, still facing the monster, which is very much still here and very much about to kill us.
"Lucifer… don't joke about this. Do you think we're going to survive this? There's no chance we can," Elena's whisper trembles like her knees.
Is she serious?
Knowing what's coming, this quest feels like a damn blessing.
Even so, I get it.
She doesn't know what fate has in store for us.
"Like I said before, Lucifer is useless. Because of him, we got so many wounds in the last fight," Aren says, barely keeping his anger in check.
"Shut up, Aren," Elin snaps, her voice sharp as shattered glass. "If the monster doesn't kill you, I swear I will."
She turns to Lucifer, blood still dripping from her shoulder. "We survived because of him. He found the damn weak spot."
She's angry—at him, at herself, at the fear.
Her body is practically paralyzed.
Hey, morons, this is not the time for this.
Get yourselves together.
I really wanted to say that.
I glance around. Elena's eyes burn with fragile hope. Elin forces a shaky smile. Aren looks like he wants to punch death in the face.
God, we're pathetic.
But maybe that's exactly why we still have a chance.
I step forward. Lunar light weighs on my chest like chains—cold and absolute.
The monster's growl is still frozen—but I swear I feel its hunger vibrating in the air.
Time to say it. Clear, loud, before the monster finishes its warm-up.
"Listen up," I growl, voice rough from… everything.
"We're f**ked. No sugar-coating it. The odds? Laughably suicidal. Elena can't heal all of us. Elin's bleeding. Aren's barely holding on. And me? Sorry, guys—I still need little more time."
A bitter laugh escapes me.
"Before the academy staff saves us? We'll already be corpses. Guess what? The monster doesn't care about our backstories. It doesn't care who deserves to live or die. It knows one thing—kill or be killed."
I take a breath.
"So if we're going down, let's at least go down swinging.
Let's accept the quest, Princess Elena."
And I do.
I accept it.
Because this is about to get seriously f**ked up.
The dome of lunar light clicks shut around us—cold, unyielding.
No escape.
No reinforcements.
Just us—and the nightmare.
I look each of them in the eye, trying to find that tiny spark under all the fear.
"This dome?" I say. "It's our cage. Thirty minutes to heal, to breathe, to prepare."
"After that? It's fight or die."
The silence hangs thick. Just ragged breathing. And the low growl of the monster—paused, but waiting.
I clench my fists.
"Let's give this constellation a show it won't forget."
You'll pay for this.
I grit my teeth, the words falling like a curse from my mouth.
I f**king hate constellations more than anything. In this entire goddamn novel.
It's not that I'm ungrateful. We got a chance to survive—sure.
But that doesn't change the truth.
I'm angry.
At myself.
Because for just one moment…
I forgot who I am.
Not a hero. Not a chosen one.
Just an extra.
A background character without even a proper name.
The healing light flows around us. Wounds close.
But the scars on our minds?
Yeah. Still there.
The clock ticks.
Thirty minutes.
And then?
Hell begins.
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Author's Note:
Hey, thanks for reading! If you liked this chapter, a power stone or comment would mean the world. Your support keeps me going!