Aqua quickly turned around.
"What the—?"
Xavier was running across the football ground.
His hand was on fire.
"HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME!"
The flames covering his hand didn't seem to hurt him, but Xavier was clearly panicking.
As he ran, he accidentally bumped into another student.
"Zack!"
The moment Xavier touched him—
WHOOSH!
Zack's entire body burst into flames.
"AAAAAH!"
Zack began screaming and running across the field.
Xavier suddenly stopped.
He stared at his burning hand.
The flames weren't hurting him.
"…Huh?"
Aqua's eyes widened.
This is happening too quickly.
He immediately began running toward Zack.
But before he could reach him—
CRACK!
A massive sound echoed across the football ground.
Aqua froze.
The enormous branch he had blasted with his water attack suddenly snapped.
Then—
BOOOOM!
The gigantic branch crashed down several metres behind Aqua.
It covered nearly a quarter of the football field.
Dust exploded into the air.
Students screamed as they were knocked down or covered in dust.
Aqua stood frozen.
His breathing became heavier.
He couldn't see properly.
He couldn't even understand what was happening.
Mana…
How does this even work?
Aqua gritted his teeth.
Then he remembered one of his skills.
Analysing Gaze.
Since he had created the system himself, Aqua knew what most of his abilities were capable of.
He immediately activated the skill.
The world changed.
Everyone around him was suddenly surrounded by a blue silhouette.
Everyone except one person.
A single student was covered in an orange-red colour.
Aqua's eyes widened.
"Zack."
He didn't hesitate.
Aqua stretched out his hand.
Water Manipulation.
Mana gathered in his palm.
A ball of water formed.
Then—
BOOM!
A powerful blast of water shot toward Zack.
The impact sent Zack flying across the field.
He crashed into a wall and immediately lost consciousness.
At the same time, Xavier finally understood how to control his power.
The flames surrounding his hand disappeared.
He stared at it in shock.
"I… I did it."
When the dust finally began to clear, everyone could see Zack lying unconscious on the ground.
There were only a few burn marks on his body.
He should have been severely injured.
But he wasn't.
Aqua knew why.
Everyone who had received the System had also gained bodies far stronger than normal humans.
Zack's body was tough enough to withstand the flames.
And Xavier's power was still only at Level One.
The teachers quickly arrived at the scene.
"What happened here?!"
"Who caused this?!"
"Is everyone alright?!"
The students were questioned one after another.
Of course, nobody had an answer.
Nobody wanted to explain what had actually happened.
Some teachers took Zack toward the nursing room while the others tried to calm the students down.
Aqua sat on the ground.
Then he slowly lay down.
He took a deep breath.
His hand was still shaking.
He stared at it.
This is happening.
The System is here.
The powers are here.
Aqua looked around.
The teachers were desperately trying to understand the situation.
Aqua knew what was coming.
He knew what would happen to the world.
He knew what would happen to everyone in this school.
Should I tell them?
Aqua slowly stood up.
He looked around at the chaos surrounding him.
The teachers were trying to control the situation.
The students were frightened.
And Zack had been taken away.
Aqua clenched his fists.
There isn't enough time.
He needed to make them understand.
But how?
Aqua suddenly remembered the System.
He quickly opened it.
Then he looked toward the top-right corner of the screen.
A small settings icon was there.
He opened it.
There were two options.
Visibility to Others
Show How to Use Skills
Both were turned off.
Aqua turned them on.
Then a strange window appeared in front of him.
A timer was counting down.
3h 53m 23s
Remaining Until: ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜
Aqua stared at the countdown.
His expression became serious.
Three hours.
That's all the time we have.
He looked around at the school.
Then at the students.
Then at the teachers.
Aqua took a deep breath.
"In the next three hours…"
He looked at the timer.
"…terrifying creatures will appear."
The teachers nearby slowly turned toward him.
Aqua continued.
"They will destroy seventy-three percent of all living things on this planet."
The teachers stared at him in confusion.
Aqua looked around the school grounds.
"Please believe me."
His voice became serious.
"Otherwise…"
He looked at the countdown.
"Everyone here will die."
The teachers didn't answer.
They simply stared at Aqua.
He destroyed a wall.
He created fire from his hand.
He showed us some kind of strange invisible screen.
Maybe… he isn't lying.
But one question remained.
How does he know about these creatures?
Aqua noticed the teachers staring at him for a long time.
He already knew what they were thinking.
So Aqua made a decision.
"Arrange an assembly."
The teachers looked at him.
"What?"
"An assembly. Immediately."
The teachers continued staring at Aqua.
Then—
One of them turned around.
And ran toward the school building.
Although he was moving somewhat slowly.
A few steps before reaching the entrance, the teacher suddenly stopped.
He turned his head.
And looked back at Aqua.
Aqua was still standing on the football ground.
Watching him.
The teacher's expression was filled with uncertainty.
Then he turned back around.
And entered the school.
Aqua looked up at the timer.
3h 52m 41s
The countdown continued.
And somewhere in the world—
Something was waiting.