The day after the outbreak of deaths.
The spiritual pressure throughout the entire academy had sunk to its lowest point. It was so dark that even breathing carried a metallic taste.
But the "Judgment Game" only intensified.
It was no longer a challenge or a joke.
It had become a contagious disease tainted with curses.
Some began exploiting Li's "Judgment Mode," manipulating souls.
Others played the role of "fake judges" and became increasingly adept.
The real game had only just begun.
Whispers rang out everywhere: in the hallways, cafeteria, gymnasium, and student club buildings.
"Did you receive your sentencing notice yesterday?"
"Have you seen your karma projection?"
"My friend can hear whispers in his sleep now that he's been sentenced..."
Some began boasting about their "lighter" sentences.
Others were ostracized by their friends because of their heavier sentences.
Some even offered paid fortune-telling services, pretending they could interpret karma.
The entire campus resembled a decaying temple.
Every student awaited the fall of an unseen gavel.
This wasn't a game.
It was a collective panic about faith.
It was noon on the playground.
A group of first-year students rushed into the student council office in terror.
"Someone's on the playground holding a trial!"
When Li arrived, he saw:
A student wearing a white mask and a black coat standing in the center of the playground.
with his back to everyone. He held a piece of paper with the word "sin" written on it.
Three students knelt before him as if awaiting judgment.
The white-masked man spoke in a low voice.
"Your sins are unforgivable."
Instantly, the three students cried out in pain.
Their souls seemed to be ripped apart by an invisible hand.
The whites of their eyes were exposed, and black lines appeared on their chests.
Li's heart tightened, and without a word, he rushed forward.
"Stop!"
His sin imprint shone painfully as if he were enraged.
The white-masked man slowly raised his head.
No expression could be seen beneath the mask; only a laugh could be heard.
"So the real judge has finally shown himself."
The next second, a gust of wind blew, and the white-masked figure vanished into black mist.
Three students were left behind with damaged souls in a semi-comatose state.
They were in the school infirmary.
When the three students awoke,
Each had an irregularly shaped black mark on their chest, like a torn "sin."
Even more bizarrely, their soul projections were chaotic, as if forcibly distorted.
One of them, holding his head, cried,
"The masked person...it's like they're reading my mind..."
Saying I'm jealous of my classmate, saying I want to harm him."
I didn't, but now I really am starting to think that..."
Li felt a chill run down his spine after hearing this.
This wasn't just imitation; it was a fake trial.
It was instilling "sin" into people's hearts.
Jinguji Hui frowned.
"This isn't ordinary imitation. This is 'soul programming.'"
Shiroya stared at Li's wrist.
"The format, tone, and gestures he used—"
It's the same pattern you used during your trial."
Li's stomach clenched.
It was late at night.
The office was empty.
Li stared at his dim reflection in the mirror.
The mark of sin throbbed with pain.
It constantly reminded him that the one who truly created the chaos was the one who had manipulated "him."
"Because of me... someone died."
"Because of me, someone was manipulated."
Should I never have had this ability?
Suddenly, his reflection in the mirror cracked into a smile.
That smile didn't belong to him.
"You can't regret it.
"The essence of the Judge's existence is to inflict pain."
Li slammed back in his chair,
His heart pounded.
His second eye moved again.
3:02 a.m.
The campus broadcast has been hijacked again by an unknown signal.
This time, there was no static.
No distorted spiritual pressure.
Only an extremely calm voice, as if announcing the start of a ritual:
"The trial game officially begins."
The next second, all the students' phones vibrated simultaneously.
The same message popped up on the screen:
[Today's nominee: Kazama Rei].
Rei's heart stopped instantly.
White Crow rushed in, her face pale with shock.
"This time...
It's not about judging a single student."
Jinguji added, his voice tense.
"It's the entire school coming to judge you."
Rei looked up, the mark of sin cracking as if burning.
The true judge
was finally forced onto the judgment seat.
The entire school erupted into chaos.
From the start of morning self-study, every electronic screen, bulletin board, and even the mirrored surfaces of lockers displayed a blood-red message simultaneously—a mockery yet also a pronouncement of judgment.
Today's featured judge: Kazama Rei."
The students erupted in an uproar, as if they were watching a cult-style live stream on campus.
"Is this for real? Is today's 'spirit world hot topic' really Li?"
"What rule did he break? Will he die?"
"No way! The student council vice president... This is too exciting!"
The whole school was speculating about whether he would be "killed."
Meanwhile, Li was completely unaware of who had orchestrated this trial against him.
Before the school bell had even finished ringing at noon, the school buildings suddenly locked themselves.
All classroom doors snapped shut and locked from the inside.
The corridor lights went out one by one, leaving only a faint red glow from the spiritual rift sliding across the floor like the breath of an ancient creature.
Students' phones vibrated incessantly as if someone were forcing notifications.
Trial proceedings begin. All students must vote: Is Kazama Rei "guilty"?
No one may leave the campus before the vote is complete.
The entire campus instantly transformed into a closed-off slaughterhouse experiment.
Li Gang stepped through the door into the student council meeting room. Suddenly, the lights went out, leaving only the screen lit.
His face appeared on it—a cropped shot, like a criminal's headshot.
"Today's trial subject confirmed: Kazama Rei.
Criminal: Interference with trial rules.
Punishment: To be decided by a school-wide vote."
"Interference? I didn't..."
Before he could finish, his heart ached as if it were being squeezed.
That was the backlash of his sins.
He realized then:
This wasn't a simple prank.
Someone was manipulating a real trial and putting him on the judge's bench.
And that person was unusually familiar with the trial mechanism.
The students in the hallway trembled with excitement.
Some were actually playing a game.
"Anyway, it won't be us who dies."
"Don't you think Li has been acting strange lately?"
"I voted 'guilty.' He's super suspicious anyway."
Fear drives people mad.
Mad people look for scapegoats.
Li became the perfect target.
Kirishima Saya kicked open the locked door and stormed in.
"Rei! Are you all right? The whole school is framing you!"
Kujō Takamura's face turned pale, and she threw down a pile of talismans.
"This voting system is fake, but the soul circuits are real. They're luring the entire school into a trial. This is a large-scale ritual!"
Shirakawa Yuna's fingers trembled.
"If the whole school votes you 'guilty,' the system will judge you as a rule-breaker. You'll disappear."
Rei looked up, her eyes like cracks in the night.
There was no panic or anger, only a profound darkness.
"So someone wants to use the souls of the entire school to kill me?"
No one dared to answer.
Everyone knew:
This was beyond the school's capacity to handle.
The school's public address system suddenly blared.
Though clearly altered, the voice carried a chilling familiarity.
It was like the shadow that had whispered in his dreams.
"Kazama Rei.
Don't you want to know? Are you the 'true judge'?"
Then let the entire school decide your worth."
A second line of red text appeared across the campus the next second:
If the school-wide vote is 'guilty,'
Kazama Rei will be executed immediately during the trial."
Kirishima Saya gasped sharply.
"This isn't a trial. This is a public execution."
Rei slowly raised his hand and pressed it against the mark of sin on his chest.
It burned as if it would scald through his skin.
He gave a cold laugh.
"Everyone wants to judge me? Fine.
Then I'll see who's manipulating this fake trial behind the scenes."
A dark mist spread across his eyes.
For a moment, he seemed to look down on the entire campus as if it were an abyss.
In the hallway, a student's voting screen suddenly changed.
The red text was covered by a black shadow, as if it had been altered.
"Vote recorded."
The judge is observing."
A student began to scream:
"Hey, hey, hey! My phone voted by itself!
Is it voting for Li Jia? Or is it changing the vote?"
Everyone panicked.
The entire school was unaware that the real judge had awakened.
His target wasn't Li anymore.
It was the "fake Judge" who was manipulating everything.