Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – The Returner’s Entrance Exam (1)

“The heart . . ?” Zod mumbled to himself .

Confused by his ramblings, someone asked, “What do you mean by the heart?”

“I read about it in a book many many years ago,” Zod said . “A dragon’s heart

acts like an engine for magic—just like our mana circles . It’s an enormous

magic engine that sucks in the surrounding mana . ”

Mana circles . Mana was absorbed into mana circles so that it could be

controlled and used . This was elementary knowledge for a mage .

Zod continued, “The dragon’s dead, which means there’s nothing controlling

the mana accumulated inside its heart now . Since mana is very fluid, it’s

continued to flow around, which has resulted in this ‘engine’ overheating . If

this continues—”

“I don’t understand what you’re saying!” Priscilla interrupted . “Say it in

simpler terms!”

Desir spoke up, reaching the conclusion quickly . “The overheating engine is

about to explode . ”

“WHAAAT?!?!?” Priscilla shrieked in a shrill voice .

A terrible rumbling arose from the body, punctuating Desir’s words . The

uncontrollable mana overflowed, overwhelming everyone present, and causing

their faces to turn deathly pale .

“Why didn’t we know about this before we killed it?”

Zod’s usual empty eyes gleamed with despair . He spoke in a dead and

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monotonous voice, “ . . . Because . . . this is the first time humanity has ever defeated

a dragon .

“An explosion caused by the pressure of the mana contained within the mana

circle . . . This kind of phenomenon would be equivalent to 7th circle magic . . .

“No, even that’s too low of an estimate . This amount of mana is beyond the

reckoning of mortals . Also, if it’s pure mana rather than magic, it’s not

something we can ‘hijack . ’

“ . . . I think it’s time we prepared . . . ”

The looming inevitability cast a pall over the survivors, like a bitter, black

cloud . It was as Zod said . A mana explosion of this scale was impossible to

dodge, impossible to block .

“I . . . I can’t believe it . The world is really . . . right now . . . ” Raphaello turned to face

the gathering mana-storm with a thousand-yard stare .

“Our Father who art in heaven . . . ” Priscilla’s quiet prayer was drowned out by

the coming storm .

Desir stood at the center of the group, his face strained with pain and despair .

The disaster unfolded before him, and a hundred thoughts raced through his

mind . The magic surged outward, but only one thought stood out .

‘Is this the end?’

He closed his eyes, as he felt the wicked wind slash across his face .

That was his final memory .

Desir Arman opened his eyes, staring at his outstretched hand .

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‘Wait . ’

Something was amiss .

‘Where am I?’

Voices, chattering in excitement, filled the air . He lowered his hand and

surveyed his surroundings . A massive chandelier, gilded with tens of sapphires,

lit the room . Hundreds of students dressed in black uniforms sat at dozens of

oak tables surrounding an antique stone shrine .

As Desir glanced around in confusion, he realized, ‘ . . . this looks familiar . . . ’

Looking down, there was a glass cup in front of him . A young boy, eerily

familiar, stared back in confusion . He had deep black eyes and bright red lips .

His face wasn’t quite handsome, but he had a bit of a childish charm to him .

‘Wait, this is . . . ’ Gone were the scar-covered cheeks and rugged skin . A fair,

somewhat effeminate school-aged child greeted him . He was his adolescent self

again .

‘What’s going on . . . ? I definitely died back there . . . ’

He sat, confusion and doubt racing through his mind, until a sudden ringing

disrupted his thoughts .

The ringing of a bell attracted everyone’s attention back to the front . A

beautiful young woman dressed in a professor’s black uniform smiled as she

ascended the stage . As the music ceased and chatter died down, the woman

began speaking .

“Pleased to meet you, applicants of Hebrion Academy . I am Professor Brigitte . ”

Desir stared at the woman intensely . It should have been the first time Desir

was seeing her face, but instead, she seemed strangely familiar .

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“I know that many of you have come to Hebrion Academy from many different

countries . I sincerely thank every one of you for having made this long journey

to attend our school . ”

She paused and drew a deep breath before continuing .

“However, I regretfully inform you all that not everyone who has come here

will be admitted to our academy . As is tradition, everyone will be required to

take our entrance examination, the results of which will determine who is

admitted . Only 600 of you will be admitted to Hebrion . We will be testing you,

of course—”

“By asking you to clear a Shadow World,” Desir muttered under his breath as

Professor Brigitte spoke .

“–by asking you to clear a Shadow World,” she said . “Do not be nervous; while

this examination is similar to a real Shadow World, this one is not real . This

Shadow World has been specially constructed for the purposes of this exam .

For more details, I ask that you ask your mentors when you meet them . ”

Brigitte looked at the students with a serious expression .

“Year 3613, the 172nd entrance examination will begin in 2 hours in the main

hall of the Academy . In the meantime, please enjoy the banquet we have

prepared for you . I will see everyone again soon . ” Brigitte walked down from

the platform as she finished her speech .

The students collectively broke out in applause—all except for Desir who

looked down in disbelief .

‘Hebrion Academy entrance examination?’

Hebrion Academy was the top magic academy in the entire continent . Desir

was an alumnus . He had graduated from Hebrion 10 years ago .

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Yet, now, somehow, he was again at the precipice of entering Hebrion

Academy . His mind swirled with confusion . ‘If it’s 3613 . . . ’

Then he had been flung 13 years into the past . The Shadow Labyrinth had

appeared in the year Lowellius 3616, and he had lived in the hellish nightmare

for 10 years, from 3616 to 3626 .

Desir closed his eyes as felt the enormity of it all . Conflicting emotions raced

through his heart: pangs of guilt pierced through the happiness he felt for

coming back to this point .

An eternity of suffering and torture . The blood of his friends who died and the

tears he shed . All of it was for nothing . They failed to save the world .

10 years of suffering and 150 million dead— all for nothing . It was unavoidable,

undeniably a disaster .

And yet, somehow . . .

Desir Arman had returned 13 years into the past from that doomed future . It

was like a joke—a cruel, twisted joke .

At first, Desir had simply thought that, perhaps, it had all been a dream; a

particularly horrid nightmare that he had just awoken from . But the vivid

memories were all too real . He couldn’t have called it a dream, with all the

desperate fights and the vast array of magic knowledge he had gained buried in

his mind . All these memories flowing through his head were far too realistic for

a dream .

"You're Desir Arman, aren't you?"

A young girl appeared in front of Desir, snapping him from his contemplation .

She wore her red hair in a short bob, and, despite her short stature, her steely

eyes gave off an aura of great confidence and will .

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“Nice to meet you!” she said cheerfully . “I’m Radoria Von Dorich, but you can

call me Radoria . I’m a second-year student of Hebrion Academy, and I’ll be

your mentor for the entrance examination today . I look forward to working

with you!”

“Ah, please look after me . ” Even though his voice came out naturally, Desir felt

an unnatural discomfort as he stared at Radoria .

This was the same Radoria Von Dorich he had met in his past life . Radoria Von

Dorich was a genius, a fire mage capable of 6th circle magic . She held the

number 1 rank of her year for her entire time at Hebrion .

“What are you thinking so much about?” she asked .

“Oh, I’m feeling pretty nervous,” he answered .

Radoria giggled . “There’s no need to get scared over the entrance exam . The

Shadow World they use is specially made; it’s incomparable to a real Shadow

World in difficulty . ”

“Is that so?”

“It’s still an exam, though . Like, ‘can you really go fight against the Shadow

Worlds?’ kinda thing . ”

Introductions more or less complete, Radoria started her preparations for the

entrance exam . She flicked through her documents on Desir, and then paused

and looked up . “Huh? You’re a commoner?”

Desir replied in a lackadaisical manner as if the question was irrelevant . “Is

there a problem?”

“Well, if you’re a commoner, you’re probably going to experience some

hardship, I guess? Even if you pass, they’ll put you into the Beta class . They

don’t really care for commoner half of Hebrion; they won’t give you a proper

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education there . ”

This unexpected return to the past made a crucial fact slip his mind . Despite

being the foremost magic academy on the continent, Hebrion was harshly

segregated into two halves: the nobles of Alpha class, and the commoners of

Beta class .

“Well, it’ll only matter if you pass your exam . ” Radoria then lead Desir down a

long corridor .

After 10 minutes, as if the long silence had bothered her, Radoria spoke again .

“Oh, I forgot to ask before . Do you know what a Shadow World is?”

“More or less”

Radoria furrowed her brows in suspicion . “Do you really know though? To join

the effort against the Shadow Worlds, you need to have perfect knowledge of

what they are . Even if this is just an examination-specific Shadow World,

Shadow Worlds are still inherently dangerous you know . ”

Desir simply nodded at Radoria’s explanation .

She let out a small huff . “Alright, if you’re so confident then, why don’t I test

you with a few questions?”

“Okay . ”

“First question,” Radoria’s voice held a clear note of mockery . “What is a

Shadow World?”

Desir cleared his throat and began speaking:

“Shadow Worlds .

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“They occur each year, and they are the most dangerous phenomenon mankind

has ever seen . Like an infinitely long corridor with countless rooms on each

side; there are countless worlds, each with their own bizarre set of rules .

“These worlds are a glimpse into the past, and each world has its own risks .

While some Shadow Worlds are weak, others can be extremely dangerous . The

Magic Society determines the power (and implicitly, the danger) of a Shadow

World, and assigns it one of 10 classes . It’s usually possible to estimate the

number of deaths likely to occur by knowing the class of a Shadow World .

“Without a doubt, however, the most dangerous characteristic of a Shadow

World is its potential for an ‘Encroachment’ event to occur . Encroached land is

smothered in a thick, black fog, and it becomes impossible to know what’s

happening inside . Only one thing is certain: no living being has ever entered

encroached land and returned alive . It is simply a place where life cannot exist .

“This is why humanity must fight against the Shadow Worlds . ”