The entire ruined site was massive — about the size of a small village, stretching several miles in every direction.
To keep things fair, each Squad was allowed to choose their own entry point into the ruins. Squad 27, for example, decided to enter from Northern Gate Twelve.
This was done so that every team had an equal chance to reach the center.
If all the Squads had been forced to enter from the same spot, they would’ve started fighting right away — and the whole point of ‘capture the flag’ would’ve gone out the window.
By spreading everyone out, every Squad was given time and space to move, plan, and try to win without getting caught in a battle the second they stepped into the ruins.
By now, several Squads had begun their carefully timed formations.
Some were moving as coordinated triangles, others as stealth-focused pairs, some even perched on rooftops to scout the path ahead.
But then came the first boom!
The ground started shaking violently, like the whole vicinity was hit by a localized earthquake.
After a few seconds, another explosion sound thundered throughout the ruin, echoing off the crumbling walls and resonating in the silent streets.
Finally, a massive pillar of blinding golden light flashed in the darkness of the Night Sanctuary and lit the starless black sky like a flare.
Every Cadet saw it.
Then…
—RAAAAGH!
A horde of Spirit Beasts — a literal, frothing horde — surged through the ruins in one stampeding wave.
Some monsters had too many eyes. Some had none. Some floated. Some had bones growing outside their bodies like blades.
It didn’t matter.
They were all running.
And the terrifying part?
They weren’t just moving randomly.
They were chasing… someone.
And that someone was running straight for the center.
•••
Squad 11 was inside the northeastern tower. Since their team consisted only of archers, they decided to take the nearest vantage point as soon as possible.
That’s when they saw the first flash of golden light.
“What the hell was that?”
“I-I can see someone running! Is that—”
“Samael Theosbane,” their captain muttered darkly. “Of course it is.”
Their plan was to execute a full-stealth sweep, move from rooftop to rooftop, and divert Spirit Beasts using summoned illusions.
Now their plan was in the gutter.
The team captain resisted the urge to pull his hair out. “We go left! Abandon the path—!”
But by then, it was too late.
Beasts surrounded the base of the tower they were in. The building cracked. They all screamed.
—BOOM!
The tower toppled.
But fortunately, before they were crushed by the falling rubble, a few of Selene’s Sentries dove in front of the sky and whisked them away.
The whole Squad 11 was eliminated.
•••
Squad 19 had been hiding underground, following a map that led through the lower tunnels.
They had lightless vision, traps for anyone that might follow them, and a flawless route they had scouted the day before.
They were going to stay underground, avoid the monsters, and crawl slowly toward the center.
Their plan was perfect.
…Until several dozen Spirit Beasts tore through the walls from above and collapsed the passage entirely.
One girl barely managed to activate her emergency teleport Card before being trampled.
Another Cadet lost her weapon. Another nearly lost his leg — thankfully, the Sentries came to the rescue before that.
With it, half of Squad 19 was also eliminated.
•••
Squad 2 saw the chaos from afar.
Their captain made a split-second decision. “Don’t go toward the center. Let that guy draw the beasts. We’ll flank. We’ll wait.”
“…Wait? For what?”
“For the madman to die!”
•••
Of course, not everyone cowered from the chaos.
Some saw it as an opportunity.
“Change of plans,” barked Captain Leon Vaan Asta of Squad 7. “We hunt the lunatic.”
“What?” one of his teammates blurted out.
Leon turned sharply. “Listen. If he makes it to the flag, we all lose. He’s not even with his Squad. If we work together, we can take him out.”
One of them hesitated. “Didn’t he recently ascend to B-rank? Fighting him will be challenging. And even if we manage to beat him… the stampede will hit us next.”
“Yes,” another added, paling. “We’ll get trampled!”
Leon pinched the bridge of his nose, already exasperated. “If we don’t go in, we lose anyway! This is our chance. We take it.”
So they turned.
Adjusted their weapons.
Set their sights on the man ruining the game for everyone else.
…And hesitantly moved in.
•••
That’s the gist of what was happening with the other Squads.
Me? Oh, I was having the time of my life.
The ruins howled.
Not from the wind.
No, that sound came from monsters.
One scream. Then two. Then ten. Then too many to count.
Some lunged at me from the sides. Some attacked from the front. Most were still chasing behind me.
I had to constantly keep moving just to avoid getting swarmed by the living tsunami of Spirit Beasts.
To top it off, this whole place was a maze.
Dark, entwining streets. Dozens of empty roads that led nowhere. It was hard enough just keeping track of where I was going.
It would’ve been a nightmare to navigate this place even with a proper map — let alone without one.
Thankfully…
I wasn’t taking the roads.
Oh, no.
I was plowing straight through the buildings.
Yes. I was barreling through the ruins like a living battering ram.
“This is fun,” I thought out loud, feeling the wind whip against my face as I ducked under a claw sharp enough to gut me like a pig to a butcher.
Without breaking momentum, I skidded to avoid a spiked tail flailing at me from the right.
Then I jumped over the gaping maw of a grotesque creature that looked like an unholy amalgamation of a giant earthworm and a rotting lionfish — all teeth and tendrils and too much slime.
It lunged. I vaulted.
And as I soared over it, I twisted mid-air, drove my boot into its skull (or whatever that thing had for a skull), and kicked off — like it was just another stepping stone on my path to glory.
The impact made a wet crunch.
The thing howled.
I didn’t look back.
Honestly, if not for my [B-rank] physique — which not only enhanced my Essence control to peak efficiency, but also boosted my physical prowess and reaction time by several folds — outmaneuvering these monsters would’ve been impossible.
Make no mistake, it was still insanely difficult.
But right now I could manage it.
Especially since I could use the very terrain to my advantage.
Up ahead, one of those giant creatures with insectoid legs and a human torso appeared to block my path.
The street was narrow, boxed in on both sides, so I had nowhere to go — no choice but to face the insect-human hybrid beast dead ahead.
But I couldn’t slow down. Not with all the monsters behind me closing in fast. So I summoned my Origin Card.
The moment «Matterweave» manifested, the soles of my combat boots disintegrated, and my bare feet hit the ground.
The pavement beneath me rippled and shifted, surging up into a concrete wave that solidified into a ramp.
I ran up that ramp, vaulted over the beast’s head, and landed on the rooftop of a building beside the street.
A few monsters jumped after me. Others just bulldozed straight through the building.
I still didn’t stop.
I kept leaping from one rooftop to another.
Soon, a towering spire came into view, blocking the path ahead. I summoned «Fire Arrow» and blasted a hole in its withering wall.
—Boom!!
The wall exploded in a shower of ash and crumbling stone, flames licking the air like hungry tongues.
I dove through the hole before the dust even settled.
The world blurred — just a flash of gray and smoke and something sharp nicking my cheek — and then I was tumbling into what looked like the upper floor of an old chapel.
Stained glass shattered beneath my feet as I skidded across warped floorboards.
I barely ducked in time to avoid getting skewered by a flying beast with far too many wings and absolutely no understanding of aerodynamics.
It smashed into another Spirit Beast that had followed me through the hole… and promptly got eaten by it.
Yes. Eaten.
By its own kind.
Apparently, friendly fire was a thing in this monster mosh pit.
“You guys need to work on your coordination,” I muttered, panting, as I crashed shoulder-first through a window that was barely holding itself together.
Wood splintered. Dust flew.
I dropped down into the street like a meteor, landed in a roll, stifled a grunt, and just kept going.
Another flying beast dove at me from ahead — probably aiming for my delicious face — but before it got anywhere close—
—Kaach!
A jagged concrete spike erupted from the ground. The creature couldn’t stop in time and ended up impaling itself right on it.
It twitched. Once. Twice. Then stopped.
I sighed and jumped over the corpse.
The street ahead sloped downward, leading into a sunken plaza.
And in the middle of that sunken plaza was the white flag we needed to capture, standing tall on a flagpole.
The flag was so pristinely white that it practically glowed in the dark.
I grinned. Because from here on out, victory was within reach.
After allowing myself a split second of rest, I took a deep breath and sprinted forward once again.
But then—
—FwOOOOOM!!
The entire world lit up orange.
Heat washed over the left side of my face like a furnace. I snapped my head toward it… and saw a fireball the size of a carriage speeding toward me, hot enough to peel flesh from bone.
“OH, COME ON—” I barely managed to raise my golden blade. The runes along its surface flared just as the fireball struck.
—BOOM!!!
It exploded on impact.
The shockwave hit me like a sledgehammer to the chest.
I skidded across the ground, my cloak steaming, blade smoking in my hands, and came to a stop just shy of crashing into a broken fountain.
I looked up.
And there she was.
My favorite redhead.
Princess Alice.
She was standing at the edge of the street.
Her battle robe shimmered with crimson runes, her box braids fell down to her back, and her palms still engulfed in residual flames.
She smiled. It was not a kind smile.
Immediately, as if on cue, footsteps echoed from my left.
I turned… and spotted my lovely twin sister.
Thalia.
She was clad head-to-toe in heavy golden armor with a silver-furred cape draped over her shoulders, holding a large kite shield in one hand and a bastard sword in the other, her face obscured by a plumed helmet.
Perfect.
I rolled my eyes and glanced over my shoulder, already knowing what I’d see.
And yep.
There he was.
The last of the three clowns. Prince Willem.
Grinning like an idiot, dressed in light chainmail, twirling a battleaxe like he thought it was a baton.
I was trapped on three fronts with no exits.
…Which was fine.
Because I was itching to put these three in their place.