The murmur in the room subsided as Headmaster Im Ilseong and Maid Eun-Wol walked in. Every staff member lowered their gazes slightly and furrowed their brows.

  The air was filled with a stifling tension that dug its teeth deep into the skin of everyone, and the current silence only further solidified the feeling.

  Im Ilseong took his seat at the head of the table, his usual aloof demeanor nowhere to be found. It had been lost for a while now, but it was a lot more prominent at the moment.

  “This is bad, headmaster,” Professor Jung was the first to speak up. There was a timidness to her tone, one that wasn’t usually present. “What do we do?”

  “We keep it from the students for now, that’s what,” said Dr. Elias Namgoong in reply.

  “But they have the right to know,” Instructor Park Minjee chimed in.

  “Yes, they do. But they also have the tournament to be preoccupied with,” Dr. Elias Namgoong replied. “What good will it do to tell them of something so delicate? It’ll only strike fear in them and derail them from the main focus of their time in school.”

  “Nonsense,” Professor Kang Hyunsoo voiced. He rarely talked during these meetings, but he couldn’t help himself this time. “Such nonsense, Elias. If there’s anything that the students should know about, it’s this.” He slammed his hands on the table. “A professor of theirs is dead!”

  The room stilled.

  That revelation was not something they all had no idea about. And it hadn’t even been that long since they had found out. Regardless, it still carried the same weight. The death of a professor was not something that could just be shifted aside, and it was definitely not something that could be kept under wraps for long. It put the academy in a great deal of trouble, and could risk their standing in the eye of the Council of Mages. An academy that could not keep its own professor safe. How could it swear to keep its students safe?

  “We have to do something, headmaster,” Professor Jung continued. “We know who did this. It’s obvious. We can’t just keep letting them get away with terrorizing our country.”

  Im Ilseong took a deep breath, knotting his fingers. “We aren’t letting them get away with it, Jung Seoyeon. And we most certainly won’t let them get away with killing a professor of our academy…” He paused. “Regardless of what he did.”

  The brows of the staff dropped at that statement, each one as confused as the other.

  “What he did?”Professor Jung was the first to speak up.

  Im Ilseong turned to Eun-Wol standing beside him and nodded. She operated the pad in her hand, and a projector dropped from the ceiling of the room. With another tap on the screen of the pad, a display appeared on the projector, and she shuffled between pictures that showed Professor Dmitri arriving at Club Spiral.

  Gasps echoed through the room.

  “What’s this, if I may ask, headmaster?” Dr. Elias said, tilting his head gently.

  “An anonymous e-mail sent to the headmaster,” Eun-Wol replied in Im Ilseong’s stead.

  “Anonymous?” Park Minjee shuddered. “Someone was spying on Professor Dmitri?”

  “I fail to understand, headmaster,” Professor Jung said. “Someone was spying on Professor Dmitri. He willingly walked into Club Spiral. And you just mentioned something about what he had done. How do these all relate to one another? Do you mind explaining?”

  Im Ilseong nodded. “I apologize for keeping this from you all for all this while. Until this moment, it had all been speculation, and it would have been unethical of me to strike suspicion in your hearts in the advent that it all came out to be nothing but false.” He cleared his throat, hesitating to reveal such delicate information. But if not now, then it was never. “I suspected Professor Dmitri to be the one who pushed his brother, Nikolai, to lean into drugs and cause the Berserker event that had occurred with the boy.”

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  Everyone suddenly stiffened, dazed looks spreading across all their faces. It was silent for a long while, stretching on to the point that it almost felt like it would never come to an end. Then Professor Jung broke it.

  “Club Spiral,” she said. “The drug. Blackguards. Are you saying Professor Dmitri was in cohorts with the Blackguards?”

  Her notion further raised the heavy feeling in the air in the room.

  Im Ilseong nodded, leaning back into his seat. “Precisely.”

  “I don’t understand,” Park Minjee voiced. “Why would Professor Dmitri be involved with the Blackguards? Why would he do that to his own brother? Why then was he killed by them? And if Club Spiral is their base, why haven’t we apprehended them?”

  “Speculation, Minjee,” Im Ilseong answered. “Like I said, it was all speculation until now. And it still honestly even is to a certain extent. The Consortium did raid Club Spiral, but we found nothing. And because Nikolai lost his memories, we were unable to obtain any definitive proof that his brother was involved and he had gotten the drug from Club Spiral.”

  “So what do we do?” Dr. Elias asked. “This image is not proof enough for all the claims. Professor Dmitri’s body was also found far away from the club; almost three hundred miles away. We still have no evidence.”

  “I understand,” Im Ilseong said.

  “Understanding is not enough, headmaster,” Dr. Elias voiced. “We have to take action. They are becoming more and more brave. The Dungeon Breaks have been spiking in numbers; it’s only a matter of time there are a lot more in the city than the Mages can handle. They are also distributing those drugs of theirs rampantly in the street. And now they have killed a professor? I do not want to have to say what they can end up doing next. This cannot keep on happening.”

  Im Ilseong pinched his eyes and heaved a deep sigh. “This is an emergency,” he said. “For now, have the tournament continue as it is supposed to, but be extra vigilant. I have already filed a complaint to the Council of Mages. In the next few days, a Private Mage will arrive, and we shall take things from there. Remember, the students are not to know about this. School life has to go on as intended. We cannot afford anymore qualms. And besides, if things end up going the way I fear, then we will need them fully trained for what is to come.”

  ###

  “What’s up with them?” Hakyun whispered, leaning slightly into Merlin. “What’s up with the mood?”

  It was the day of the start of the tournament, and Merlin would have claimed that it was why the professors of Prestige Academy all had fierce looks on their faces, but his Perception told him that it was slightly different from that. They were not giving off the usual competitive spirit that came with occasions like these, but something more vengeful and taut. They were furious.

  Is it because of Professor Dmitri?

  Merlin glanced around. The man was nowhere to be found. What had happened behind the scenes?

  “Well, that’s kinda weird,” Nora muttered. “That shifty looking professor isn’t here.” She was standing beside Merlin amongst the line of the ten students appointed to represent Prestige Academy in the tournament.

  Despite Merlin never being one for subtle japes at figures of authority, now was not the time for jokes so he didn’t bite into Nora for her disrespect. He had also not told her about his and Sunny’s little side quest, so he hadn’t shown her the pictures Sunny had sent him regarding Professor Dmitri’s exploits to Club Spiral. Basically, she was in the dark about the whole matter. And even though he felt bad, it wasn’t the time to start revealing those sorts of things. He put those thoughts aside for the moment as Professor Jung stepped forward, silencing the students.

  “The details of the first round of the tournament have been made known to you all during the orientation,” she began, her voice echoing through the Open field due to the portable mic she had on. “And you have read the materials provided to you, so I assume no one has any confusion that has not been resolved in the days past.” Everyone remained silent. “Good. The event will be broadcast live, not only in Prestige Academy, but in the other Mage Academies in the world, and even on live television for the everyday citizen. This tournament will determine the positions of the top three Mage Academies in the world as has been said. I trust you will all take it seriously.”

  Everyone took a deep breath, their hands tucked behind their backs as they listened attentively. Students of Prestige Academy, Crown Academy, and Nikita Academy; they all strengthened their resolve. The tournament held more meaning to them than even their entrance exam. No one would tolerate failure.

  Merlin bit his lower lip, his heart pounding heavily in his chest.

  He didn’t know about the others, but he had a lot on the line with this tournament. It was his chance to prove himself to his parents. And he would make certain of that.

  Professor Jung turned to the instructors in charge of serving as a roadblock to the students and nodded. They all dispersed into the trees in the Open field. A few minutes later, she clicked on her smartwatch and the ground shook. The students gasped as they noticed the terrain shifting a few ways away, but not close enough that they could see exactly how it had changed.

  She turned back to them. “Begin.”