"Still on break, huh? Looks a bit deserted."
The boy muttered softly, gazing at the vast and luxurious campus before him.
"But that just makes things easier. Slipping inside should be much less of a hassle."
Looking at the grand school gates, his lips curved faintly upward, forming a charming arc.
A moment later, the boy was gone.
On the stone monument beside the gate where he had stood just seconds before, four large characters were carved:
— Hagun Academy!
Hagun Academy, Director's Office.
The room was decorated in an opulent style.
Behind the desk sat a woman in an office-lady suit, striking in appearance.
She was none other than Hagun Academy's newly appointed Director—Shinguuji Kurono.
At that very moment, Shinguuji Kurono was reviewing a dazzling ability-assessment file from the academy's entrance exams.
Name: Stella Vermillion
Age: 15
Nationality: Vermillion Kingdom
Offense: A
Defense: A
Magic Power: A
Mana Control: B
Physical Ability: B+
Luck: A
Student Summary: Princess of the Vermillion Kingdom. Ranked first in Hagun's entrance exam. Holds the highest magic reserves in the world, though with slightly lacking control. Comprehensive Rating: A-Rank.
"A-Rank…"
Lighting a cigarette, Shinguuji Kurono exhaled smoke into her office.
Blazer Rankings.
It was the simplest and clearest way to measure a Blazer's ability, just like Academy City's Level 1 through Level 5 system.
The League of Mage-Knight Nations had established this ranking system, dividing Blazers into six grades:
A, B, C, D, E, F.
This applied not only to the overall evaluation, but also to each individual attribute.
The standard was used worldwide—both for official Mage-Knights under the League and for student knights still in training.
The file Kurono was reading belonged to the only A-Rank Knight among this year's freshmen at Hagun Academy.
In fact, it was the first time in several years that the school had recruited such a promising talent.
"Still… never expected that Her Highness, the Princess herself, would enroll in our academy."
Even as director, she couldn't help but mutter that complaint.
Who could blame her? Hagun's reputation was a mess.
Thanks to the incompetence of the previous director, Hagun had consistently performed poorly at the Seven Star Sword Art Festival. Sure, they usually scraped into the quarterfinals, but they had never once taken the championship.
Though Kurono had taken over the academy this year, its reputation and atmosphere hadn't fully recovered.
And now, the princess renowned for possessing the world's strongest magic reserves—the one believed destined to shine on the global stage—had chosen to enroll here of all places.
How could she not be shocked?
"…But since she's here, I'll make full use of her. With a student like this, even if our first-year chances are slim, by the second year we'll practically be guaranteed the championship. And besides…"
Kurono picked up another student file.
Name: Kurogane Ikki
Age: 16
Nationality: Japan
Blazer Rank: F
Offense: F
Defense: F
Magic Power: E
Mana Control: E
Physical Ability: A
Luck: F
Student Summary: Possesses only one-tenth of the magic of a normal knight. Scores abysmally in nearly every category. Considered to have virtually no potential as a Mage-Knight. Comprehensive Rating: F-Rank.
"The collision between him and her… should spark quite an interesting reaction."
If those words of Kurono's were to spread outside, people would laugh her out of the room.
After all, the Blazer ranks were already clear.
One was a lofty A-Rank Princess, the other a worthless F-Rank Failure who couldn't even qualify for a knight's license.
To put it bluntly—
It was like imagining a grand emperor colliding with a beggar wallowing in a gutter.
Was that even possible?
And yet, Shinguuji Kurono said it outright. She truly believed it could happen.
Putting down the files, her earlier good mood vanished.
Her sharp eyes locked onto the door, her voice suddenly cold as steel.
"Suppressing your presence… not bad. But did you really think I wouldn't notice you?"
As soon as her words fell, a murderous aura erupted from Shinguuji Kurono.
"Engrave yourselves into eternity—Origin Father (Propator), Goddess of Thought (Ennoia)."
In her right hand appeared a pitch-black handgun.
In her left, a pure-white twin of the same design.
They were nearly identical except for their colors.
Kurono raised the black gun, pointing it directly at the door.
"This is your last warning. Come out."
Her voice was icy, her killing intent so dense it almost took physical form, radiating into the air.
In that moment, she didn't seem like a school headmistress at all—she looked more like a seasoned warrior who had taken countless lives on the battlefield.
"…I see."
Seconds ticked by. The intruder outside the door still didn't reveal himself, ignoring her command.
Kurono's cold fury deepened.
"Bang—!"
Without hesitation, she pulled the trigger.
The magic bullet materialized in the chamber and blasted forth instantly.
"Vmmm—"
But instead of striking the wall with the expected impact, the bullet vanished on contact—replaced by a twisting black singularity.
Plaster, bricks, even the rebar within the wall—all were devoured into that distortion.
The black void widened gradually, its pull weakening only after a moment.
Finally, the figure lurking outside the door stepped forward into view.
"Ahh… what a short-tempered director you are. I truly had no intention of being your enemy, you know."