I closed my laptop.
"… Well, that's terrifying."
George killed someone purely for enjoyment. I had seen in this world. On the surface, society seemed functional with science and magic vastly improving the quality of life, but underneath existed phantoms without morals. Phantoms referred not only to Specter, but also superhumans who rejected heroes. Governments officially recognized them as wanted criminals, but the public called them villains.
"What killed him?"
The drone was unable to capture exactly what happened. Only after slowing it down eight times did I catch a glimpse. George threw a punch and a violent pressure erupted, instantly killing the police officer.
"He killed someone without even touching them. Also, this thing…"
I stared at the drone on my bed. It could come in handy if i change it with SP.
Wiing—
My smartwatch rang.
[Yo, can I nominate you?]
It was Lila Dawn. She seemed to be talking about tomorrow's duels.
[Why?]
[What do you mean why? You provoked me several times.]
I still had one nomination left. Cadets had to duel at least three times and at most five. I didn't need to fight anyone else unless someone nominated me.
[No, I'm exhausted.]
I am not interested in fighting
against Lila Dawn. They is no need to waste my magic power or stress myself.
[You can think about it tomorrow. Also, how did you destroy mana reinforcement with a bullet? You didn't even use your personal weapon. That's all everyone is talking about. It was your gift, right?]
Hm....So this was her real goal.
I just ignored her. I doubted she had any nominations left. Even if she did, she wouldn't waste her energy since she was fighting Rachel tomorrow.
"Whoa, it's already 11:59PM?"
I took off my smartwatch and prepared for bed. When I turned off the light, I received another message.
[You put on quite a show.]
It came from Mira Dawn.I briefly replied.
[I didn't want to get hurt.]
[Because you destroyed a mana reinforcement with your bullet, many guilds are interested.]
[I know.]
I gained quite a bit of SP, 300 since noon. Once I collected a bit more, I could tweak some of my stats.
[They're already calling your gift superpower bullet and bullet reinforcement. Speaking of which, what do you think about guilds?]
[Those names suck.]
[No, what do you think about Starlight Guide?]
"Hmm."
"Mira Roodes judged people solely based on their usefulness. Unfortunately for her, I'm not someone she can manipulate so easily—and with that mindset, she's only going to get worse."
[Contacting cadets beforehand is illegal. That's a 500+ million won penalty.]
I sent a joking message to end the conversation.
[First, I'm still a cadet. Cadets can recruit other cadets without violating the law. Second, I can afford to pay at least that much.]
She replied quite seriously. I felt a bit awkward.
[That's not your money, it's your Family money.]
"[Oh, and your little performance in the second and third matches? Brilliant. Almost made me think you were serious.]"
"… This girl."
Why did she talk like I hid my true power? If anything, Saul Mayne was the one hiding his power.
[Were you watching, I thought you don't care about low rank cadets?]
[I had some time. I think your growth rate is too quick. You were rank 930 during the initial exams, but overwhelmed the rank 18 cadet after switching to a gun. It's too noticeable…]
"What is she going on about?"
I also ignored Mira Roodes Honestly, I was exhausted after three fights today.
"… Oh right."
I suddenly remembered something else. I turned on my smartwatch and sent Agent Soon a message.
[Brother, thanks for the drone. I'll take good care of it and put it to good use.]
***
The Numbers boss sat cross-legged on the ground in a pitch-black abandoned factory. A series of battles from the day played in her head.
Saul Mayne's swordsmanship was as she had heard. His sword strikes were light as a feather, but carried destructive power. Every movement flowed like water. It was so well polished it seemed more suitable to call it a sword art that swordsmanship.
Next was Louis Hall. I heard he drop the sword and pick up the spear.His spearmanship was truly domineering. He stabbed directly at his opponent's vitals and overwhelmed anyone's defense. Using his long reach, he relentlessly attacked from every direction. It looked more like a one-sided beating than a duel.
— Next is the man you mentioned, Boss. The one who called you hot.
She nodded silently. The video in her eyes changed to a battle between a sharpshooter and a warrior. It was obvious who would win. However, she suddenly opened her eyes. She had only briefly watched the video, but the sharpshooter's bullet destroyed the warrior's magic power. She carefully examined the magic power around the bullet. If her eyes weren't mistaken, it could only be one thing. The power of anti-magic. What she was looking for all along.
— Interesting, isn't it? I was surprised too when I first saw it.
"Paul Wayne. Write his name down on the notebook."
She spoke without hesitation.
— …Really?
"Yes."
— But George said he didn't like him.
"George hates sharpshooters."
George was a true warrior who believed in staring into the opponent's eyes and striking them down. He also didn't like the other George hates the others members that fought from long range.
— I guess. He did say Saul Mayne and Louis Hall were okay.
"Then put their names down too."
— Then we'll only have limited slots left. Is that okay?
Individuals with their names in the notebook would have their live locations tracked. The notebook acted like a tracker. In addition, the owner of the notebook could teleport to the target's location. However, one condition had to be met: [The target cannot know their name is in the notebook]. As long as the target wasn't told, there was no reason they would notice.
— Who do we prioritize?
"Mmm."
Boss closed her eyes and recalled that day some yeay years ago when she first cried because of that man's betrayal and the death of their previous leader. She vowed revenge in front of a grave and carried the Numbers organization own her shoulders.
"For now…"
The Numbers had survived after the death of its previous leader. With a new leader, they took a giant leap forward using vengeance as nourishment. However, they couldn't find the traitor. Even if they did, they wouldn't be able to do anything, so Boss kept searching.
The power of anti-magic, which could destroy the magic power physique…
"Put Paul Wayne on top priority."
It's time I paid my little brother a visit. He left without a word... but some bonds don't break that easily."
***
I stayed in my room until 12 AMon Tuesday to avoid any nomination. Although the duels continued until today, no one nominated me.
"A pack of popcorn and an orange soda, please."
The vendor didn't say much—just nodded and started scooping. The smell of freshly popped corn hit me, warm and buttery, carried on the buzz of the arena crowd.
"That'll be 250 Shards," he said, placing the orange soda on the counter. The can hissed softly as he set it down, condensation already forming on the sides.
I slid the coins over, grabbed the bag and the drink, and kept moving. The roar of the audience was louder now—somewhere in there, my name was probably being whispered.
"Come again!" the vendor called out.
I didn't look back. I popped the can open with a snap, took a sip—sweet, fizzy, artificial. Just enough sugar to keep me sharp.
My eyes were already locked on the gates ahead. Time to enjoy today's show.
Currently, it was 1 P.M. and I stood outside. I was bored, so I went to watch Lila Dawn (rank 4) fight Rachel (rank 3) and Saul Mayne (rank 1) against Ashley (rank 8).
"The seats are full."
The arena had 5000 seats, but I couldn't spot a single empty seat.
Should I go back? Or should I just stand and watch?
A Family suddenly stood up and left.
"Cough."
I nervously took a seat, hoping they wouldn't come back.
— Thank you for waiting!
The host announced the start of the duels, and the crowd excitedly cheered.
Sssss.
Someone sat next to me. I glanced with a bag of popcorn and drink in my hand and looked back ahead.
"…?"
An image flashed through my mind—her face. Sharp eyes, cold expression… she looked familiar. Too familiar.
I chewed slowly, forcing down the mouthful of popcorn, then took a sip of my orange soda.
I glanced again.
My heart froze. My breath caught in my throat.
The Boss of the Numbers was sitting right next to me.
She didn't have a real name—just a title. Just Boss.
PFFT!
The soda shot out of my mouth in a startled spray, splattering across her cheek.
My mind was racing, my hands still buried in popcorn like I could hide inside the bag itself.
Okay. Calm down. Just finish the snack. Pretend you didn't just spit orange soda on the face of a criminal overlord.
I waited a beat… then slowly leaned forward in my seat. Just a little. Just enough to casually slip away and pretend I had somewhere important to be.
One foot touched the ground.
The second followed.
Almost there—
Snatch.
Her fingers curled around the back of my shirt like a claw machine locking onto a prize.
"Sit down."
I dropped like a brick. No thoughts. No resistance. My body just obeyed, spine straight, eyes forward.
It wasn't fear.
It was survival.
In the middle of my spiraling confusion…
"Huak!"
A shout echoed from above as someone lost their footing on the stairs.
The poor soul flailed wildly, and their oversized soda flew from their hand—twisting through the air like a spinning top launched by fate itself.
For one glorious second, the drink hovered midair, defying gravity...
Then—splat!
It landed squarely on someone's head like a perfectly placed crown. Soda erupted over their face and shoulders, the cup still upright and impressively full.
For the record, that was the second full drink disaster in under five minutes.
The universe had a sense of humor. A messy, sticky one.
I didn't know whether it was luck, divine protection, or sheer fear radiating from my body… but not a single drop landed on me.
However—
I slowly turned my head to the side, heart pounding. My vision swam a little.
There she was.
Underneath the tilted soda cup—now heroically balancing on her head like some cursed crown—the Boss's eyes were twitching. No—trembling uncontrollably, like two tiny earthquakes threatening to destroy everything in their path.
She didn't speak. She didn't move.
And that was somehow so much worse.
I swallowed hard.
This wasn't just a bad day.
This was the start of a national emergency.