Morning arrived without warmth. The facility moved like clockwork.
They were Perfect.
They were Predictable.
And they were controlled.
Haruka sat at the edge of his bed, staring at nothing.
But on the inside, everything was in motion.
Yesterday's discussions included voices from various stakeholders, notably the President. The nature of the truth was examined, leading to an important individual.
Meeting the other-Haruka's soul
βHaruka had once told that, "…I want to fix this world."
At the time—
It sounded distant.
Almost naive.
Like a dream spoken by someone who hadn't seen enough.
But now—
Haruka exhaled slowly.
Haruka (thought):"…so that's what you meant."
The world wasn't broken by accident.
It was designed this way.
Carefully.
Deliberately.
Fear.
Hope.
Control.
A perfect balance—
built on lies.
His fingers tightened slightly.
Haruka (thought): "If everything is controlled…"
A pause.
"…then it can be changed."
And just like that—
A thought was born.
A thought that shouldn't exist. But it did anyway.
He wanted to expose them, overthrow the government, and even if he had to become a villain for that.
A faint pulse.
Haruka froze.
His staff—
the Ferixo on the staff—
resting beside him…
…glowed. Not its usual light. Not calm. Not pure.
It was a glowing Red-Black gradient.
Just for a second.
But enough to warn.
Haruka's eyes widened slightly.
A strange feeling crept in—
cold.
Heavy.
Watching.
Like something deep within him responded to that thought.
A quiet echo in his mind—
not a voice…
But a warning.
Alastor Stones.
Corruption.
Power that doesn't just grow—
but consumes.
Haruka's grip loosened.
Haruka (thought):"…so even thinking like that…"
Dangerous.
Not just to the world—
but to himself.
If his Ferixo turned—
If it became something else—
He wouldn't be fixing anything.
He'd become part of the problem.
Or worse—
something beyond it.
Haruka closed his eyes.
Took a slow breath.
Haruka (thought): "Then… I won't do it like that. βHaruka thought the same, I guess, and maybe that's why he was rejected by the Ferixo Stones. I bet the Alastor Stones would've loved him. Corrupt him, too. But what else can I do?"
After thinking deeply for a few seconds.
Haruka(thought):
"I got it... Thank you, God."
His hand rested lightly on the Ferixo again.
This time—
No darkness was glowing from it.
Just silence, silence louder than any shouting.
Like it was… watching, quietly like The Watchers.
Waiting, quietly like a one-sided lover.
To live properly in this universe, he had to learn more about it. He had to learn the names of the Villain's teams.
He had to gather as much information as he could so that he could blend in among them as a typical human, just like them.
He went out of the room. Saito and Yume were still asleep, but one of the guards entered and woke them up.
"Room-A0174! Wake up! Today is your first day as a J-class Mage! Your practice will begin at 10:00 AM! "
Haruka cursed at himself.(Thought):
"Oh shoot! It's 8— oh wait, I have too much time. I can have breakfast and then wait for Yume and Saito..."
Following the hall, he went to the cafeteria.
After breakfast, he went back to his room, seeing that Yume and Saito were having breakfast inside their room.
Haruka: "Oh, I could've done the same."
Saito: "Skill issues, bro."
Yume: "You are too dumb to think otherwise."
They kept eating.
Haruka was dumbfounded by the fact that Yume looked too stress-free even after realizing they had died and been transmigrated into an alternate reality.
Haruka went to bed above Saito's (Which was a Bunk Bed to begin with)
He lay there and checked the time. He got refreshed, took a shower, and ate within an hour, so now it's 9 o'clock.
He still has 30-40 minutes to spend.
He started to think... he can easily spend time thinking.
Haruka(thought):
"For that, I need someone to start a real Organization... I need them to contact me... What can I do?... OH... Yes...I have 3 elements, knowing that any normal Villain organization would want to recruit me... It needs to be publicized at first... so that they get the news... I will find out a way for sure..."
He kept thinking more because he wanted his plan to succeed, the plan to overthrow the system.
Haruka(thought):
"But what's the point of it... I can easily just abide by the system... what's my profit to save a universe that isn't mine... What's my profit to save innocent lives... I don't know, but I think I shall keep moving forward with the plan..."
a pause.
He began thinking again.
"I haven't met Atience and Rideous P. for a really long time... Not that I want to meet them..."
But there again, something inside of him softly whispered in his mind that they never left and they never will, they will keep watching, and when the right time comes, they will come, maybe someone new will come too...
The guards entered the room after a few minutes.
"Pack it up, Room-A0174! Time's up, your training session will start soon, all J-class mages are summoned at the Training Arena!"
Haruka (whispered to Saito):
"This feels more like a prison than a Fancy School."
Saito (whispered back):
"No shit about that, but at least we are elites now, better than ordinary people. Let's see where fate takes us."