Upon waking, as I made my way forward, I began to sense something deeply unsettling.
It felt as though I had grown more savage than usual, as if a feral urge had taken root within me—an intense, almost feverish craving for the hellish training in class. This feeling was utterly foreign to my nature. I had never been fond of conflict except in my ignorant youth, back when I understood nothing of the world.
As I matured, I came to despise violence devoid of purpose or benefit. Yet now, at twenty-five, I found myself perceiving brutality as an outlet—even yearning for it. What, then, distinguished me from a staggering drunk?
Something else felt wrong about the classroom itself. Just yesterday, murderous intent toward Master Bam had crept into my thoughts—so vivid that I had seriously considered killing him.
Had I lost my sanity?
He was clearly a superior being. How could someone like me—a mere Wrestle—even dare to entertain the thought of ending the life of a superhuman?
A cold shiver coursed through my body. It felt as though my fingers had brushed against a hidden truth.
Even inside the hall, the atmosphere was steeped in unease. My classmates wore open expressions of contempt toward Master Bam—far stranger still, the terror that had once gripped their faces had vanished entirely.
Could the human psyche truly undergo such a radical transformation in just ten days?
No. Impossible. I was absolutely certain of that.
So what, then, was the cause of this change?
The hellish training came to mind—but I dismissed it at once. I had spent nearly nine years in the criminal underworld, yet even that had failed to alter me as profoundly as these last ten days.
My thoughts drifted to the magical sphere from the examination. I turned the matter over in my mind, and in the end, I deemed it possible—though unlikely.
After all, it had not responded to everyone. Some had been expelled from the hall.
A disturbing thought surfaced unbidden:
What if everything had been orchestrated from the very beginning—and you, along with everyone in this classroom, were nothing more than prey?
I rejected the notion at first. There was Amanda, after all—a girl of noble lineage.
Yet after deeper contemplation, my rejection was no longer absolute.
And then, the greatest suspect emerged.
The healing potions.
They were the only plausible medium—substances that had penetrated deep into our bodies through open wounds. If they possessed the power to reattach severed limbs, why would manipulating emotions be beyond them?
Without a doubt, they were the prime culprits.
I halted before the academy, dread seeping into my bones. A sensation overtook me, as though I were a sacrificial beast calmly walking toward the slaughterhouse at dawn.
I shouldn't go. I should turn back.
Suddenly, the sensation of being watched seized me.
I cast a quick glance toward the second floor. No one was there—yet my certainty remained unshaken. It felt as though an unseen gaze lingered upon me from that very corner.
My fear intensified.
How had I noticed? How could I detect someone observing me from such a distance? This was not a sense possessed by ordinary humans.
What had the academy injected into us?
And why had I only just become aware of my own abnormality?
I hadn't noticed anything strange in the previous days. What had changed in the last two that dulled my aggression?
…Ah. Revenge.
Yes. I had taken revenge on Wolfgang.
Yesterday, I had been intoxicated with triumph, as though a massive burden had been lifted from my chest. And now I realised something else—I felt calmer than I had yesterday, even though my body seemed closer to collapse.
I resumed walking toward the classroom in silence—toward my inevitable slaughterhouse.
I knew with certainty that even if I attempted to flee, I would not be allowed to. They had, evidently, invested too much in us.
I entered the classroom. As always, Amanda sat in the front row, her demeanour cold and detached.
Minutes after I took my seat, Master Bam burst in and stood at the centre of the room.
At once, I felt as though I were trapped in a cage with a beast on the verge of erupting.
The Master raised his hands, gripping his head as he muttered deliriously:
"Yes… she is the cause… kill her… yes, kill her, and the students will obey… yes, she is the one who ruined your pleasure…"
The moment those words reached my ears, my skin prickled violently. Something unnatural crept along my spine.
I turned my gaze toward Amanda in the front row—and what I saw horrified me far more than the Master himself.
She was watching him with a smile brimming with anticipation.
A numbness spread through my legs. I understood then—I was caught at the heart of a vast conspiracy.
Before my thoughts could settle, the sound of shattering bones echoed throughout the classroom.
What I witnessed next froze the blood in my veins.
The Master's skin split and peeled away, like a serpent shedding its skin. Upon the exposed, bloodied flesh, strange geometric patterns emerged—hexagonal plates hardening across his body—while he remained utterly oblivious.
In a distorted voice, he screamed at Amanda:
"You… are the rea…son… and now you will die… I will kill you… yes… I will devour you…"
Three eyes sprouted from his head. His fingernails warped into grotesque claws. His bones cracked with a nauseating cacophony, accompanied by an eerie hissing sound that filled the hall.
The transformation continued. His facial features blurred beyond recognition, and grotesque horns erupted
from his skull, and fingers began growing from his forehead—driving themselves into his own eyes.
Yet those eyes seemed to plead for salvation.
Tears streamed down his face as he cried out in a broken voice:
"Please… help me… ple—"
Before he could finish, his tongue split down the centre, and his eyes morphed into those of a reptile.
Just before the transformationwas completen, I heard measured footsteps approaching—cal and, deliberate.
They stopped at the doorway.
I looked toward the newcomer, and sudden hope flooded my chest.
A man with radiant golden hair entered, a neatly kept beard framing his chin.
It was Master Michael.
He glanced at me indifferently, then turned to Master Bam and stepped forward, stopping beside Amanda.
In a voice utterly devoid of emotion, he said:
"My lady. Everything is prepared. The target has lost control."
My mind reeled.
Why was he addressing Amanda as my lady?
And what target were they referring to?
With chilling composure, Amanda replied:
"It seems we arrived at the perfect moment. Otherwise, someone else might have extracted value from him."
A wet, grating sound echoed.
I turned—and nearly retched.
Master Bam had fully transformed into a grotesque hybrid of centipede and serpent. Five sealed eyes lined his face, while fingers obscured every remaining feature.
It was a creature more horrifying than my worst nightmares.
As I trembled in revulsion, his eyelids began to twitch—writhing like worms.
.
Then—suddenly—the five eyes snapped open.
And in that instant…
I lost consciousness.