"Be careful next time."
The broad man that went by Sergeant Thraxx warned, as Alexi marched out of the interrogation room with an older woman.
"Seriously, I can't believe you almost ended up arrested on your first day. Typical infernals." A sharply dressed woman grumbled, rubbing her temples. She then turned back to glare at Alexi. "Make sure not to cause any further trouble, you understand?"
Alexi, on the other hand, was still reeling from the shock of what just happened.
He… no, the entire world had changed in the blink of an eye?
People carrying about weapons, floating cities and gryphons were a normal sight here. Also, he'd reverted to his child-like state, but with horns? One thing led to another and he was beaten up by a group of strangely clothed men, sent to an interrogation room, then suddenly bailed out by a woman claiming to be his teacher.
He had to be dreaming, right?
He received a text message from Lazy God, prompting him to quickly open it.
Lazy God: How do you like it? This replica of the world you created. Eerily identical, no?
"The world I created."
"Are you listening to me?", The woman said, flicking the boy's forehead.
"Ow…"
"That's all you have to say?", She asked.
"Where are we?"
"What kind of question is that?"
"I'm being serious, madam. Please."
"Vision City, specifically Denever Plaza. It's a 5-minute walk to the academy if that's what you were wondering."
"The Rising Towers Academy, yes?"
"Are you brain damaged from the stun arrows they shot you with?"
Alexi took a step back and inspected the woman. She was a woman of average height, with a red pixie cut. She wore cat eyeglasses over her stunning emerald green eyes, which seemed to sparkle. She was dressed in a black coat, a pencil skirt, and heels, with a double-striped band over her right arm—the uniform for the teachers at the Rising Towers Academy.
More notably,
"You have a pretty face, so I'm assuming your name's Miss Sophia Blanc."
Sophia paused, dumbfounded by Alexi's brazenness.
Just then, Alexi's phone vibrated in his hand. He took a look at it and he'd received another message, which he quickly took a peek at.
Lazy God: If you wish for a chance at ever waking up back in your original world, you shall complete my mission for you in this one. For now, head over to the school. We shall have a proper conversation then.
Slothful Savant: The hell are you on about? Explain in full detail what's happening right now!
There was no way this was actually real. A being that could create a realistic replica of a novel? Such a thing could only exist in fiction, right?
Alexi wanted to reject it. For a very long time, he'd denied the existence of an otherworldly deity. For him to believe in one now just felt way too unnatural. However, since there was no other explanation, Alexi was willing to merely play along for now.
"You can flatter me all you want, but once we get to school grounds, I don't want to see you using your phone during class."
"Oh, sure."
He stuck the phone in his pocket and followed.
**********
"Yo, Chris. Can I copy your Monster Theory assignment?" Tim, a lanky teen with dusty brown hair, asked, taking a seat next to his friend.
Chris looked up from his phone and scowled at his supposed best friend.
"What? That's the next class, man. You couldn't have asked for it earlier?", He grumbled, handing over the sheet to Tim.
"No worries. I heard Ms. Blanc got called in for an emergency, so there's no class."
"Where did you even hear that from? Jules?"
"Obviously.", A girl popped up from behind Tim, flashing a cheeky grin at Chris. "Apparently, the transfer student got into some trouble with the cops."
"You're kidding.", Chris muttered in disbelief.
"Yeah. Apparently, he tried to bully some kid on the train but got caught immediately."
"Haha, that's hilarious.", Tim's gleeful laughter contrasted starkly with the way his hands moved furiously on paper as he copied Chris' homework.
"I wonder what the academy was thinking when they started to accept infernals as students.", Jules snuck a peak at a student sitting at the very edge of the classroom by her lonesome. The student had two distinct red horns growing out of the sides of her head.
In the very next moment, the door to the classroom slid open and two people walked in. All the students that were out of their desks quickly rushed back to their seats and stared attentively at the two.
One of them was Ms. Rosa, the Monster Theory Instructor.
"Crap.", Tim muttered as he hurriedly wrote down the notes.
"Tim." The teacher called, and her eyes were fixed on him.
"Y-Yes?"
"Please collect the home assignments I handed out to all of you immediately."
"U-Um… ok."
With a conceding sigh, he walked around the classroom. A bunch of the students laughed at his failure.
"Better luck next time.", Chris whispered.
"That's enough, class.", Sohpia cleared her throat and wiped off her smirk. "As some of you know, we have a new student joining us today. He's an infernal, so please give him the warmest of welcomes."
With that introduction, the student walked into the room. Upon first glance, he looked completely normal. The average high schooler, has blonde hair and dark eyes. But of course, the pair of white short horns protruding his forehead took away that human feel immediately.
All the students looked at him attentively, anticipating the next words to come out of his mouth.
The boy looked around the classroom, his gaze lingering on some longer than most, before eventually looking in a general direction.
"No, no, no! What the fuck is this?!", He yelled, his face contorting in righteous fury. All students were immediately on their toes and instinctively reached for their weapons. "I'll fucking kill this crazy bitch."
He kept on rambling, looking directly in front of him.
All eyes in the class followed his gaze and eventually settled on his target, Chris.
**********
The moment Alexi stepped into the room, he was taken aback by just how much the class matched his descriptions. It was like a lecture hall, with rows of tables, going up just a few steps. The teacher podium was flat on the ground, with a holographic screen serving as the class writing board.
The room was lit by dim fluorescent lights and the air temperature was kept cool, but no air conditions could be seen. There were no windows in place, only a few vents that made sure the room didn't get too cold.
The students all wore similar uniforms to his.
Alexi stopped right before the podium and faced the class, ready to get this over with. Thinking back on it, it felt like the time when he transferred to a new high school back in the real world. Back then, he was so nervous, but now it felt like he was talking to a bunch of children.
'Benefits of being a college student, I guess?'
He had already moved past this stage and had somewhat succeeded in one aspect of his life. He had made multiple appearances online, albeit with a mask/head gear to hide his identity, and had gotten over his stage freight.
A bunch of NPCs were nothing.
"Hi th-huh?"
Interrupting him, a blue screen popped up before him.
=======
WELCOME TO THE INFERNAL SYSTEM, USER: SYSTEM LOVER
=======
Alexi rubbed his eyes and blinked multiple times to ensure he wasn't hallucinating.
"No, no, no! What the fuck is this?!"
=======
INSTALLING SYSTEM FUNCTIONS
Progress: 13%
=======
A system screen? An actual system screen? Of all the stupid things this supposed god could have given him, she chose to give him what he hated the most?
"I'll fucking kill this crazy bitch."
Alexi's murderous intent was so palpable those surrounding him could almost see it. A pair of students immediately appeared before him, bearing weapons—a spear and twin daggers—at his neck; their murderous intent very clear.
"Say that again and we'll see if you live to see tomorrow.", The little girl, about half Alexi's size, barked.
"Now, why would you say that to Chris?", The taller, slanker guy asked with a dry smile on his face. Out of the two, he radiated a scarier aura.
"E-Eh?", Alexi backed away, shocked by the sudden threat at his life.
He looked at those two, and from their features, he could instantly surmise who the two were.
A girl with a tiny body, twin pigtails tied with red ribbons, a cute face, and large, round, stormy grey eyes, with a mouth all too small for her personality,. Jules Gerthwig, one of the 5 main protagonists of Alexi's story,
The boy, on the other hand, was about a foot taller than Alexi. He had a skinny frame, but possessed herculean strength. Coupled with his laid-back personality and dark eyes, almost no one ever suspects him of being a potential powerhouse. Of course, this wasn't the case here, since Alexi was well aware of who this boy was. Timothy, or, more commonly, Tim, is referred to by his friends.
"Chris?", Alexi's mind slowly caught onto what the two were saying, before his eyes finally settled on the boy behind the system screen.
The boy's cold glare was only matched by his cold appearance. With spiky black hair, crimson red eyes and tanned skin, the boy seated appeared to be the average highschooler, but simply his aura alone radiated something far more dangerous.
This was Christopher Pickles.
Alexi didn't put any thought into his character design or name while writing the story. He believed a good plot would carry the story even if other aspects were lacking or generic or even silly.
"Ahem.", Ms. Sophia to the side, cleared her throat, glaring daggers at him. "If you are done with your introduction, Mr. Arthur, please take a seat so we may begin classes."
Alexi looked at her, then at the sharp blades across his throat. He chose to quietly back away, even though he still hadn't got the chance to introduce himself to the class. Not like it mattered anyway.
**********
The novel
With their appearance, however, came power. Power called 'Talent'. Those who were able to wield these talents banded together to fight back against the monstrous forces, forming the Unified Humanity Force. Together, humanity managed to create safe spaces—cities that floated in the air, safe from the unpredictable attacks on the ground called the Sky Domes. And those who protected these sky domes were known as Defenders.
It follows the main character, Christopher Pickles, who suffers from an infernal attack earlier in his life. He vows to wipe out all devils. He meets a bunch of students with similar goals, and together, they go on their adventure to kill the devils once and for all.
Of course, things didn't go as planned.
Alexi wasn't an optimist. He gave these characters reasonably powerful abilities, but when matched with the abilities of their opponents, the main characters were simply outmatched. One thing led to another, and the novel concluded in the most painful way for the characters, which earned Alexi all his backlash.
Of course, he didn't care and assumed that was the natural way to go about things. If anything, he believed this story was more of a tragic hero's tale that would inspire the actual hero of humanity later on, if he ever felt like writing that sequel story.