Lustra stepped forward, a soft, teasing smile playing on her lips as she raised a hand to quiet him. "Relax, let me explain. There are thousands of minor gods out there in the cosmic hierarchy, but the Upper Moons—we sit right at the top."
Haruto crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow. "Right, three moons... and you three are among them?"
"Exactly," Lustra chuckled. "Think of us as the principal deities whom humans worship and revere. We are the ones who govern and maintain this entire world's underlying system."
Haruto squinted, processing her words. "Wait... if you guys run this place, doesn't that mean the God of Creation made all this?"
Lustra let out a melodic laugh, shaking her head. "Oh, the God of Creation manages the vast, infinite universe at large. But this specific world—this localized dimension where magic and system mechanics exist—is controlled and maintained by us. Every single rule, layer, and mechanic in this realm was built by our hands."
Haruto's eyes widened slightly. "You're telling me you guys engineered the entire leveling system too?"
"Guilty as charged," Lustra grinned. "After all, humans are the only unique species here granted the ability to level up and break past their limits. We designed the cosmos to run on that very progression."
Before Haruto could ask another question, Ivory let out an impatient huff and lightly smacked the back of his head with a rolled-up scroll. "Enough with the questions! We're supposed to be helping Haruto grow, not giving a lecture on cosmic administration." She crossed her arms, looking away with a sniff.
"Besides, we aren't even gods anymore, we are humans bound to him."
Lustra stuck out her tongue playfully, laughing it off. "Ahaha, right, right! Mum's the word."
Haruto stood there, tapping his chin thoughtfully as he looked over the chaotic group. A heavy sigh escaped him as he turned his attention toward Professor Elara.
"Look, Professor," Haruto started, rubbing the back of his neck. "You were supposed to be our master strategist. But if you can't even keep your own lies straight or predict a basic ambush, we don't really need your help out here. Honestly, you should probably just head back."
Professor Elara's eyes went wide in panic. "Don't do that! I already submitted my resignation letter back at the academy!"
Lilith chimed in from the back of the van, grinning maliciously. "Well, told you so."
Elara clasped her hands together, a desperate, pleading smile on her face. "Please, just give me a chance! Let me prove my worth to the party!"
Haruto raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. "Oh yeah? And how do you plan to do that?"
"Right now. Come with me," Elara said, gesturing toward the front tire of the van.
Curious, Haruto followed her over. Elara pointed down at a jagged, dark stone half-buried in the dirt near the tire. "Pick that up."
Haruto shrugged, bending down to easily hoist the heavy rock into his hand.
"Now," Elara instructed, her voice dropping into a sharp, analytical tone. "Break it using pure physical force."
Haruto squeezed his grip, channeling his strength to snap it in half, but the stone didn't even crack. He grunted, putting more power behind it, yet the surface remained entirely solid. He couldn't even leave a dent.
Seeing him struggle, Bellona casually stepped up beside him. With an amused smirk, she reached out, plucked the stone right out of Haruto's hand, and gave it a light squeeze.
CRACK.
The rock instantly pulverized into fine dust in her palm. As the debris fell away, a small, folded piece of parchment fluttered down from the crushed stone, landing gently on the ground. Haruto blinked in surprise and bent down to pick it up, unfolding it to reveal a series of mysterious notes written inside.
Haruto stared down at the parchment, blinking in utter confusion. "What is even this?"
Elara crossed her arms triumphantly, a smug grin spreading across her face. "See? Read it."
Haruto squinted at the handwriting and read aloud: "Today, we join Haruto's party. And by the way, even if my lies get caught immediately, we're stopping right here because we're about to uncover some serious secrets."
Ivory drifted over, peering over his shoulder. Her eyes narrowed. "Wait a minute... you're saying the professor planned all of this in advance? She deliberately told those lies just to orchestrate this exact moment?"
Elara nodded proudly. "Bingo. Now, just wait a second and watch..." She held up three fingers, counting down softly. "Three... two... one."
Right on cue, the rustling of bushes echoed from the dark treeline.
"Bandits incoming!" Elara announced calmly.
Sure enough, a swarm of armed thugs rushed out from the shadows. Elara had already sensed their presence from miles away using her acute sensory abilities. To make matters worse, they were currently stranded in a deserted area at night with the van's headlights blazing like a giant beacon.
Haruto sighed, cracking his knuckles. "Oh great. Guess we actually have to deal with—"
"Relax, these are just Level 40 adventurers turned bandits," Ivory interrupted, waving a hand dismissively. "Nothing we can't handle."
Before Haruto could even summon his weapon, Elara pointed upward. A tiny, high-altitude scout plane droned quietly overhead.
"Looks like we have uninvited company from above," Elara murmured.
Suddenly, the hatch of the small aircraft opened, and a figure dropped straight down. A girl clad in a sleek black top and shorts plummeted toward the earth, landing with a flawless, impact-absorbing slide. In a single, blinding flash of steel, she drew a blade and wiped out the entire wave of charging bandits in one effortless slash.
Inside the van, Lilith peeked out the window, let out a massive yawn, and muttered, "Ugh, what a bore," before casually leaning back to take another nap.
The mysterious girl sheathed her sword and turned toward the group, her expression stern. "Inside the van. Now."
Everyone hesitated, but at Haruto's sharp command, the party quickly filed back through the doors. Haruto lingered for a second, grabbing a protesting Lilith by the collar and dragging her inside by force before slamming the doors shut.
Haruto pressed his face against the van's window, staring outside at the chaos. The mysterious girl in the black top and shorts was an absolute force of nature, her hands moving in a lethal blur.
Outside, it was a total bloodbath.
Inside the van, Lilith casually reached over and covered Eterna's ears and eyes, shielding the sleeping girl from the gory display.
Fifty-four agonizing minutes later, the violent slashing finally stopped. Haruto carefully cracked open the van door and stepped outside, his breath catching in his throat.
The entire ground looked completely unrecognizable—slashed to pieces, drenched in crimson, and littered with debris.
Looking back toward the van, Haruto signaled to Toya. "Toya, get out here. Keep everyone else inside for now."
Toya stepped down onto the blood-soaked dirt, following Haruto as they surveyed the carnage. Everywhere they looked, scattered body parts and mangled remains were strewn across the earth. Standing in the center of the gruesome aftermath was the mysterious girl, casually dragging one of the bandit's lifeless bodies by the hair. The corpse's head was beaten completely past recognition, soaked in blood.
Haruto and Toya carefully stepped over the ruined terrain, walking up toward the strange girl. But as they got closer, they realized she wasn't even paying attention to them. She was still aggressively kicking and dragging one of the bandit's already lifeless bodies, showing zero mercy.
"Hey, um... excuse us," Haruto called out, raising a hand.
The girl finally stopped, standing up straight. As she turned her face toward them, her expression was completely blank and emotionless.
Haruto looked her over, blinking in utter disbelief. Despite the horrifying display of sheer brutality just moments ago, she actually looked remarkably innocent. Her hair was stark black, save for a few striking golden streaks, and her arms and legs were slender and delicate. She looked like a sweet, harmless doll—which made the terrifying bloodbath around her all the more jarring.
"Who are you?" Haruto asked, narrowing his eyes slightly.
The girl stared back at him with dead, unblinking eyes. "Before you ask for my name, state yours first."
As Haruto opened his mouth to introduce himself, one of the half-dead bandits on the ground suddenly twitched, letting out a weak groan.
The black-haired girl's eyes snapped toward him. "Tch. Some pests just don't know how to stay dead, no matter how much you beat them."
With a cold expression, she raised a single finger adorned with a dark, obsidian ring. A plume of dense, black aura erupted from it, crackling violently before snapping outward like a whip. In a flash, a massive, spectral scythe materialized in her grip. Without a second hesitation, she hoisted the heavy weapon and slammed it hard into the earth.
Haruto watched in absolute shock as the scythe ripped through the ambient energy of the battlefield. The souls of every single fallen bandit were forcefully ripped from their mangled bodies, swirling upward into a haunting, black column of light that spiralled straight into the sky.
As the soul fragments vanished into the atmosphere, the girl casually walked over to the twitching bandit, pressing the tip of her boot against his torn remains. With a sickening crunch, a surge of dark pressure pulsed from her foot, and the entire body violently burst apart, leaving nothing behind.
She flicked a speck of dust off her black top, turned her deadpan gaze back to Haruto, and repeated flatly: "Now. Your name."