On that night, while the city of Zenith was drowned in the hum of electric machinery, the movement of cars, the rush of trains, and the noise of nightlife—beneath the silver glow of the moon and the lights of advanced technology—
There was movement… in a place where there should have been none.
In an old, abandoned wing of the main building, where dust covered the marble floors like a thin shroud, and moonlight slipped through tall arched windows, a woman walked forward.
She had long silver hair, sapphire-blue eyes, and wore a tight black uniform.
Aurora Phoenix moved in complete silence.
She reached her destination.
A vast, empty hall.
Perhaps it had once been a ballroom—but now it was nothing more than a wide expanse of darkness and silence, with chairs draped in white cloth like ghosts.
Aurora stood at the center, letting the darkness envelop her.
"Come out," she said suddenly, her cold, sharp voice cutting through the stillness.
"..."
No response. No movement. Nothing but heavy silence.
She waited for a moment, her eyes fixed on the empty distance.
Still nothing.
"I know you're here. I can smell your disgusting fear from a mile away."
Silence answered her once more.
Aurora sighed lightly—not in frustration, but in boredom.
"Fine. If you prefer to play this way."
She raised her hand near her face, her gaze turning colder, and snapped her fingers.
Clack!
It wasn't an ordinary snap.
It was sharp. Absolute. Like glass shattering in an endless void.
And in that instant—
Something happened.
Fwoooosh!!
From where she stood, it spread outward at an unimaginable speed.
Pure white frost.
It crawled across the marble floor—not like ordinary ice, but like cold light expanding.
It climbed the walls, covering faded engravings in crystalline layers. It surged up the massive pillars and reached the high arched ceiling.
Fwaaashhh…!
Dust froze midair.
Spiderwebs solidified in the corners. Even the moonlight streaming through the windows seemed to slow—growing denser, trapped within this sudden winter.
But the power did not stop at the hall.
It pierced through stone walls, flooded abandoned corridors, froze crumbling staircases, and spread floor by floor.
In moments, the entire abandoned structure—this forgotten shell in the heart of the lower city—became a massive, silent ice mausoleum.
Everything froze.
Everything—
Except two things.
Aurora, standing at the center of the frozen calamity, untouched.
And the shadows.
In the deepest corner of the hall, one shadow remained—untouched by the frost. A black, living darkness.
Then… from that shadow, two figures emerged.
The darkness clung to them—alive, defiant against the absolute cold.
They wore simple black robes, their hoods covering most of their faces.
The first was a man. When he raised his head, sharp features and a neatly kept light beard were revealed. His eyes held a strange gaze.
The second was a woman—younger, with dark red hair falling from beneath her hood.
"That silver hair… the academy insignia…" the man murmured, his voice calm in an unsettling way. "The Ice Maiden…?"
Aurora ignored him and stepped closer.
"A group of foolish thieves… touching what you don't understand."
"We do not steal," the man said, a faint smile forming. "We correct."
"Correct?" Aurora repeated, her expression frozen. "You tamper with ancient seals. Seals that are better left untouched."
"And you?" he cut in, his tone sharpening. "You think this prison you live in is better? A world built on fear—where a nightmare can swallow a city—and you call that 'life'? We call it… a disease."
"It is the reality we have," Aurora replied firmly. "And we defend it."
"You defend the symptoms… and ignore the disease itself," the man said, shaking his head with quiet pity. "But it doesn't matter. You won't understand until you see it."
Aurora stopped arguing. It was pointless.
"Where is the artifact you stole?" she asked directly.
The man glanced at the woman beside him, then back at Aurora.
"You will never find it…"
"An unfortunate choice," Aurora replied flatly.
She raised her empty hand—and the cold air condensed around it.
Fwoooosh!
In an instant, a long, slender sword formed in her grasp—made entirely of clear ice, glowing with a faint blue light. Not mere ice… but something harder and sharper than steel.
"Then I suppose," she said, lifting the blade, her eyes gleaming with icy light,
"we move on to persuasion."
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Three days of unsettling calm. The atmosphere in the academy was tense—like everyone was holding their breath, waiting.
Rumors about the "grand test" on Arcadia Island spread like wildfire.
"I heard it was an abandoned research facility."
"No, it's a nature reserve filled with rare monsters."
"My friend in second year said half the students fail there."
I listened with a faint smile. They were all wrong.
The truth was always stranger—and more dangerous—than any rumor.
I spent most of my time in the library—not just as punishment, but searching for real information about Arcadia Island beyond what I knew from the novel.
But everything was sealed or classified. Even historical records about "training facility incidents" had torn pages or corrupted data.
They're hiding something.
That was the only conclusion I reached.
In the novel, this test had passed uneventfully. No terrorist attacks. No sudden Horror Stories.
Just… a normal competition between students.
…
Half an hour later, the entire Alpha class was summoned once again to the main lecture hall.
Professor Phoenix stood at the podium, the large screen behind her blank.
"Today," she began in her icy tone, "the team divisions for the final test will be announced. As you know, Class Alpha—twenty-six students—will be split into two teams of thirteen. Alpha-1 and Alpha-2. These teams will compete against each other—and against teams from other classes—on Arcadia Island."
She paused, letting the words settle.
"Team leaders were selected based on overall performance and leadership ability. The remaining members were distributed… to ensure balance."
I don't like the way she says 'balance.'
The screen lit up.
[Team Alpha-1]
[Leader: Leo von Falkenhayn]
No surprise. Leo was the natural leader—the noble, perfect face of the class.
Names began appearing beneath his.
Serena Valerian
Ethan Riddle
Chloe Jansen
Zane Wilder
Liam Brook
Finn Riley
Jax Monroe
Rio Kennedy
Rex Barnes
Drake Mallory
…
I stared.
I expected something like this…
This wasn't a team.
It was an army.
Every major offensive and tactical force gathered in one place.
Leo as leader. Serena as striker. Ethan as raw power. Chloe as chaos. Zane as infiltrator. Liam as defense.
This wasn't a team built to compete.
It was built to annihilate.
Like putting all the Avengers on one side of a friendly basketball match.
And I wasn't among them.
With Ethan there, it would've been easy to survive…
"Tsk…" I clicked my tongue.
The academy's message was clear.
This was the winning team.
Whispers of awe filled the hall.
Then—
[Team Alpha-2]
[Leader: Isabella de Luna]
A main character… as leader.
I never understood that choice—even in the original novel. She was strong, yes—but not a traditional leader.
Look on the bright side.
Nothing had changed from the original story… except one thing.
I was in the second team.
Names appeared.
Luna Farris
Jasper Rock
Maya Hawthorne
Elara Quinn
Toro Kaneki
Kai Morgenstern
Aster Corvus
Sam Wentz
…
I read the list, face stiff.
What a team of… special cases.
Strong individuals—but all of them…
Lone wolves.
Then the final name appeared.
Adam Lester
I lifted my head.
Professor Phoenix was looking directly at me. Expressionless.
She had done it.
She didn't just put me with the introverts.
She put me in the team that screamed:
"Control them—if you can."
Did she do this on purpose…?
"Understood, leader!" Ethan's voice rang out confidently from the other team.
I looked at mine.
Isabella stood stiffly, clearly overwhelmed.
Toro smiled faintly, amused.
Kai… was looking at me.
I turned away, biting my lip.
Is he already planning to target me?
Rex Barnes laughed from across the hall.
"Look at that! They put all the weirdos in one team. This'll be easy."
Don't be so sure…
Strength wasn't everything in a survival game.
I looked at Isabella.
Leadership will be a nightmare for you.
Then at Toro and Kai.
And working with you will be a headache.
I sighed.
So much for a peaceful break.
After the announcement, Professor Phoenix gave us the rest of the day "to get acquainted and form initial strategies."
Translation: go argue with each other before I send you to an island to do it on a larger scale.
Alpha-1 gathered immediately around Leo, already discussing tactics like a proper hero team.
Meanwhile… Alpha-2…
Was a disaster.
People drifted apart. No excitement. No discussion. Just silence and individuals who clearly didn't want to be here.
I was about to leave—
"Alpha-2. Meeting Room 7."
Isabella's voice stopped me.
She stood there, arms crossed, trying to look like a leader.
But I saw it—her shoulders trembling slightly.
She had been thrown into this role just like I had.
I sighed. No escape.
We gathered.
The scene was surreal.
Luna walked like she was in a forest, not a hallway.
Jasper followed like a silent shadow.
Maya looked weighed down by everyone's emotions.
Elara kept her distance.
Toro and Kai whispered like conspirators.
We entered Meeting Room 7.
I sat at the farthest seat, as usual.
Isabella took the head of the table.
"Let's begin…"
What followed…
Was chaos.
Half-answers. Silence. Deflection.
Toro challenged her authority outright.
Tension filled the room.
Before it could explode—
I spoke.
"He has a point."
All eyes turned to me.
"Adam?" Isabella said.
"Mystery can be a weapon," I continued calmly. "If we don't fully know what he can do, neither will our enemies. Let him stay off the board."
I wasn't defending him.
I was protecting my own interests.
Isabella hesitated… then relented.
The meeting dragged on.
No real plan.
Just mistrust.
When it ended, Isabella approached me.
"Lester," she said quietly. "I don't know what your game is. And I don't trust you. But you're on my team now. If you try to sabotage this test… I'll make sure you regret it."
Toro challenged you… and you threaten me?
I smiled.
"Don't worry, leader. We want the same thing."
I turned and walked away.
Not getting beaten up, I thought. That's my real goal.