Arena Academy has several places with unknown purposes.
One of the most famous is a place called the 'Infinite Maze'.
It's a massive bush, growing apart from all the facilities of the Academy, with a wall of greenery that maintains a vibrant green color regardless of the season and blooms with pure white flowers that never wither.
However, those who are lured by the beautiful flowers and venture inside will face a great deal of trouble.
"Ugh…"
A girl, squatting on the ground with her back against the giant bush, sniffled.
She raised her wrist, adorned with a smart watch. The battery was almost depleted.
Even though this model was supposed to catch signals within the cracks, the screen currently displayed a 'no signal' message.
The girl cursed her past self, who had been laughing and chatting happily just two hours ago.
—It's so huge.
—This is where we'll be starting next month.
—Did you see the dorms? They're as big as our living room at home.
The girl, Kang Hanna, had awakened her powers at the age of 15, graduated from an Awakened Special High School with excellent grades, and then applied to Arena Academy, successfully passing the entrance exam.
She had come to tour the Academy with her fellow successful applicants, and the tour itself had been more than satisfactory.
Now, all that was left was to return home, except for one oddity that had occurred just as they were about to leave.
—Do you guys know about the Infinite Maze?
—What's that? Why is it called infinite? Is the guy who made it crazy?
—What are you talking about? It's just that my sister's friend, who goes here, told me…
The Infinite Maze.
A mysterious place within Arena Academy.
Rumors circulate among graduates and current students of the Academy, like a legend, that an incredible artifact is stored at the end of the maze.
The maze is named 'Infinite' because even famous graduates who are well-known in the world couldn't reach its end.
Since even those graduates couldn't reach the end, it was only natural to assume that newcomers like them wouldn't stand a chance.
Of course, that would be the correct assumption. However, the thoughts of these young girls were a little different.
What if…?
Among the well-known Awakened, there are often stories of them gaining strength or obtaining special equipment through 'enlightenment'.
And most Awakened individuals yearn for such enlightenment themselves.
These girls were no exception.
"I must be crazy…"
Kang Hanna sniffled, her bones chilled to the core, as she struggled to stop her runny nose.
Clearly, when she had entered the maze with her friends, they had been together. But after taking just three steps, something strange happened.
It was as if she had blinked and suddenly the friend walking in front of her had disappeared without a trace. The same thing happened to those following behind.
That alone was startling enough.
However, the maze showed no mercy to the intruders.
Scattered magic power.
Sealed abilities.
Awakened Kang Hanna reverted to ordinary Kang Hanna after five years.
The first thing she did upon regaining her senses was to try to retrace her steps.
Just three steps.
It felt ridiculous to even call it 'retracing her steps'.
But even after taking ten, twenty steps, the entrance was nowhere to be seen. The next thing Kang Hanna did was to climb up the bush.
Even though her magic power was gone, she had diligently trained her physical strength, so climbing the bush wasn't too difficult.
She climbed and climbed, and eventually, her feet touched the ground.
She had reached the top of the towering bush, but when she came to her senses, she found herself back on the ground.
As her physical strength began to wane, she chose her last resort.
To break through the maze.
But after walking for about an hour, she sat down on the ground, realizing the futility of her endeavor.
'Ah, I'm screwed.'
She wanted to leave some kind of marker to ensure she wasn't going in circles, so she tried to pluck one of the pure white flowers, but she couldn't even pluck a single petal, let alone the whole flower.
At that moment, the dreaming Kang Hanna woke up and became the Awakened Kang Hanna once more.
As she snapped out of her sweet dream, she immediately faced reality.
She realized that there was no way she, who paled in comparison to the remarkable graduates, could overcome a challenge that even they couldn't.
Kang Hanna had no intention of becoming a donkey chasing a carrot dangled in front of her.
Fortunately, it is said that the maze releases those inside at sunrise the next day.
Until then, she would conserve as much energy as possible and endure.
That was why Kang Hanna was sitting on the ground.
"Ugh…"
As she stared blankly at the dwindling screen of her smart watch, a sudden shadow fell over her.
Kang Hanna looked up to see a man with unkempt, messy black hair.
A sharp jawline and a sharp nose.
Broad shoulders and chest that strained the fabric of his coat.
Long legs.
'I want to take his glasses off…'
The man had appeared out of nowhere.
Normally, she should have been startled and immediately on guard, but Kang Hanna's mind was filled with nothing but the desire to remove the ridiculous glasses from the man's face.
As Kang Hanna looked up at the man, he looked down at her.
The man was the first to speak.
"Kang Hanna."
"…"
Kang Hanna, who had been captivated by the man's face, jumped at the rich, deep voice that seemed to melt her ears, and quickly snapped out of her daze.
Thump—! Thump—! Thump—!
As soon as she regained her senses, her heart began to race.
Kang Hanna casually adjusted her collar as she cautiously opened her lips.
"D-do I… know you?"
"Name tag."
The man gave a short reply and pointed with his thick, long finger at Kang Hanna's chest.
Kang Hanna's gaze naturally followed the man's finger downward.
"Oh…"
She noticed the temporary student ID hanging around her neck.
Kang Hanna's face turned as red as a volcano about to erupt.
'You crazy bitch!! How else would he know my name after all!!'
She berated herself inwardly, unable to lift her head again, too embarrassed to look at the man's face.
Then, she noticed the man's clenched fist.
More specifically, the black ring on his finger.
"Are you… a professor?"
In response to her question, the man didn't answer. Instead, he held out his hand to her.
Kang Hanna blinked, staring at the outstretched hand.
'Is he… asking for money?'
She had read on community forums that outstanding professors often indulged in peculiar behaviors.
"Do you not want to leave?"
"…"
The man's voice melted Kang Hanna's ears and simultaneously erased her vulgar thoughts.
"I-I'm sorry…"
Kang Hanna cautiously took the man's hand, worried that he might feel the pounding of her heart through their touch.
The man's hand was large and warm.
'I must be crazy!'
Every quarter, there are practical training sessions, and it's very common for protective gear to get torn or damaged during these sessions. Naturally, it's also common for students to be exposed to each other.
But in a life-or-death situation, would they really be distracted by such things? As a result, male and female Awakened individuals became indifferent to seeing each other's bodies.
Kang Hanna had thought the same way until she took the man's hand. And now, she realized she had made a big mistake.
"Get up."
"Y-yes, yes!!"
Kang Hanna, who had been sitting on the ground, quickly dusted herself off and stood up, realizing that she had been squatting there for a while.
'Wow…'
Standing on her two feet, she could truly appreciate the man's height.
At 175 cm, she was considered tall among women, yet she barely reached his chest.
"Let's go."
"Y-yes, yes…"
Kang Hanna, feeling like a child again, tightly held the man's hand and followed closely behind him.
**
"Th-thank you."
With the man's help, Kang Hanna managed to escape the Infinite Maze just in time, before her smart watch completely ran out of battery.
"Umm… I'm really sorry, but…"
Kang Hanna expressed her gratitude and raised her head, fidgeting with her fingers before mustering the courage to speak.
"My friends are still inside…"
"Were they forced in?"
"N-no! We just…"
"Choices come with consequences."
"…"
Kang Hanna nodded meekly, closing her mouth.
'Then why did you help me…'
As she had that thought, the man spoke.
"Do you know which way to go to get to the Street of Light?"
"Huh? Y-yes, I, I know…"
The Street of Light.
It was the name given to the area where temples were clustered.
"Which way is it?"
"It's, um…"
As Kang Hanna was about to give directions, a thought suddenly flashed through her mind.
"I'll guide you there."
She was worried that the man might refuse, but fortunately, he simply nodded once, accepting her offer.
"This way…"
As soon as the man agreed, the classmates trapped in the maze vanished from Kang Hanna's mind.
Instead…
"What's your name, Professor?"
"What subject do you teach?"
"Did you come here to challenge the maze as well?"
Kang Hanna tried her best to ask questions, mustering her courage to learn more about the man. But…
"First-years can also apply—"
"Be quiet."
"…"
The man didn't answer a single question.
Kang Hanna remained silent until they reached the Street of Light.
"This is the Street of…"
"You did well."
The man, as if he had no further business, casually walked past her, his back quickly growing smaller.
She watched his retreating figure and muttered softly.
"…Did he have a black ring?"
**
'Is this Kang Hanna as a student…?'
The girl's face still had traces of youth, but it wasn't too different from the image I had always imagined through the novel.
And the street I was walking on…
A street lined with temples of various sizes and decorations.
I headed towards the largest and most ornate temple among them.
No one blocked my path.
Since causing a disturbance in a temple would result in divine punishment, there was no reason to do so.
Instead, a woman who had been praying near the entrance approached me.
Waist-length golden hair and blue eyes.
An overall chilly atmosphere exuded from her features.
A pristine white priestess robe, not a speck of dust on it.
'Claire Bean Assen.'
"What brings you here?"
The priestess's voice also carried a chill.
"A private prayer room."
"…"
The priestess led me to the upper floor without hesitation. She pointed to the long corridor and said, "You can use any of the rooms without a plaque. Then."
The priestess gave a slight nod and quietly descended the stairs.
'They don't suspect me of causing any trouble at all.'
In fact, I had no such intention. But in the not-too-distant future, this blind faith would lead to a river of blood.
'It's none of my business, though.'
I entered the nearest empty room.
A coat rack, a cushioned chair, and finally, a statue of a child whose gender was difficult to distinguish, with beautiful features.
I didn't plan to stay long, and I wasn't here to pray, so I sat down on the chair without taking off my coat. I took off my glasses and placed my smartphone in front of the statue, activating it.
WooOOOooong—
The strong will of Emptiness, which hated the gods, flowed out from my still-recovering eyes and began to envelop the statue.
ZzzzZAP!
As a small line appeared on the statue of the child, the smartphone, which had been ringing loudly, suddenly went quiet, and the dark screen lit up.
[(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞ What's with this sudden harassment?!]
[ (ᗒᗣᗕ)՞ What's with this sudden harassment?!]
The exact same sentence as in my memories.
I put my glasses back on.
[ (⇀‸↼‶) Rude person!!]
The screen displayed annoying, frivolous messages that kept popping up and disappearing.
A casual, light-hearted tone, but this was the god who owned this grand temple and was revered as the greatest among the gods.
'The God of Amusement, Bwiar.'
The only one who could find the girl at this point in time and who, later on, wouldn't antagonize her even after she awakened the power of Godslayer.
[(｡ŏ_ŏ) Hey, say something.]
I spoke to the eccentric god.
"I've come to make a deal."