Rena reclined in her chair, eyes flickering across the glowing database of her students. Their progress scrolled before her, line by line — victories, failures, scars.
"Hm." She smirked. "Not as fast as I would have liked… but progress nonetheless. Arthur. Kiyo. Lancaster. Their resilience has begun to amuse me."
Her fingers drummed against the armrest. Then the grin sharpened.
"Perhaps it's time… Yes. I'll throw them into the Gandogo Expedition. Let's see what they can do."
Her voice dropped into the shadows around her. "Purge… what are your thoughts?"
From the darkness, Rion stepped forward, head bowed. His voice was cold and unwavering.
"On behalf of Purge, we have no objections. Your will is absolute. You act for what this world needs."
Rena chuckled. "How pleasant. Then so be it."
The council dissolved back into the shadows, except for Nagumo, who remained behind. Rena's eyes narrowed.
"The Riankoyo Region. Report."
Nagumo's reply was curt. "It has fallen to the Demon King's control. But I… suppressed the chaos. Order has been restored."
Rena's smile returned, sharp and approving. "Efficient, as always. You may leave."
When the chamber was empty, she opened a sealed file: Experiment 1007. Her grin darkened.
"Yuta… don't disappoint me."
And yet, as the file flickered shut, her thoughts drifted elsewhere. Arthur, Lancaster, Kiyo… their growth is predictable. But Shiro… Her eyes narrowed, recalling rumors of his late-night absences, his strange conversations with empty corridors. He moves like a boy with pieces already on the board. Shadows whisper around him. I'll need to see how far that web has spread.
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The Next Morning
The class erupted into chaos. Rena's telepathic broadcast had shaken them before dawn:
You will depart for Gandogo. Survive — or perish.
The uproar was immediate. Gandogo — a battlefield nearly swallowed whole by the Demon King's army. To send students there was madness.
Amid the storm of voices, a smaller group withdrew to hold counsel: Rika, Arthur, Lancaster, Shiro, Muichiro, and the twins Sayo and Kiyo.
Rika spoke first, her voice low but certain.
"I won't argue. I'll go. If others are too weak, then I'll protect them."
Arthur placed a hand on his blade.
"And I'll cut down the head of their army myself. That will end this quicker than fear can spread."
Lancaster gave a firm nod. Kiyo echoed him with fiery resolve. Even Sayo seemed determined.
But Shiro raised a hand, halting their momentum. His gaze flicked briefly toward the window, to something only he seemed to sense, before settling back on them.
"Fools," he said, his tone calm, almost mocking. "You rush to fight an enemy you don't understand. Charging headfirst is the way of cattle, not warriors. What we need… is knowledge. Reconnaissance. Strategy."
His words fell like stones, but the others bristled.
"We don't have time for cowardice," Arthur snapped.
"A leader doesn't sit back while others bleed," Kiyo added hotly.
Their resolve solidified against him — until Sayo whispered her incantation.
"Dreambind."
Arthur, Kiyo, Lancaster, even Muichiro collapsed where they stood, dragged into enchanted sleep before their tempers could boil further. Rika staggered, but fatigue claimed her as well.
Only Shiro remained standing. He blinked at Sayo, surprised, then offered the faintest smirk.
"…Thank you."
Sayo hesitated. Something in his expression unsettled her — the way he carried himself not as a boy, but as a commander. She shivered, whispering to herself, It's like he already has… followers.
Without another word, Shiro vanished into the corridors, shadows swallowing his form.
From afar, Rena had watched everything unfold through her scrying spell. She leaned back in her chair, a laugh curling from her lips.
"Hahaha… Yes. He is fit to be a leader."
The mirror flickered, and for a moment Rena saw not only Shiro but cloaked silhouettes trailing silently at his side. Her grin widened.
"Ah… so he's already begun gathering them. Clever little serpent."
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Outside the academy walls, Shiro raised his hand. At once, cloaked figures emerged from the shadows — his hidden network, loyal and silent.
They bowed.
"Leader. Your orders?"
Shiro's eyes glinted, his tone precise and cold.
"We move not as pawns, but as hunters. Gather information on Gandogo. Every commander. Every demon. Every weakness. We will strike only when the blade guarantees blood."
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A Few Days Later
Intel arrived from one of Shiro's cloaked figures: the enemy chiefs — Runkoyo, Tila, and Ekyno. Each one dangerous enough to erase the entire class alone.
Shiro carried this knowledge to the others. Fear spread through the group like fire, their courage cracking. But Rika's voice steadied them, and the others followed suit.
With Shiro's guidance, they had two days to prepare. Training was relentless, their bodies pushed to breaking, their minds strained by sleepless nights. Shiro spent the nights combing through records, guided by whispers from his network, while the others bled themselves on the training field.
Rena watched, impressed. Though fear lingered in their eyes, their spirits rose. Some even found themselves smiling through the exhaustion, finding resolve in one another.
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Arriving at Gandogo, the land greeted them with ruin. Smoke still smothered the skies. Fields were nothing but blackened earth. Villages had been ground into dust.
At the gates of the remaining stronghold, they were welcomed by King Logunard himself. His mansion — now a fortress — sheltered the last 50,000 survivors of the 175,000 that once called the region home.
Inside his war chamber, the truth was revealed. Seventy percent of his forces had been slaughtered. Eighty-five percent of the land was lost. Gandogo was not simply a battlefield; it was a graveyard that had yet to finish burying its dead.
Shiro spread his maps across the table, dividing the class into factions. Rika's squad would move west. Arthur's squad south. Muichiro east. The twins and Lancaster north. Shiro and his cloaked figures remained to guard the fortress gates and relay intelligence across the battlefield.
From her chamber, Rena watched through her mirror, her eyes gleaming with delight.
"I wonder what will happen… or how many of you will survive," she whispered.
Deep in the enemy camp, Runkoyo and his chiefs received their own orders.
"Unleash Baruka."