Lush green trees, dazzling sapphire-blue rivers, a sky glowing with the same color, thick black smoke, and burned village houses...
Wait a second...
Black smoke and burned village houses?
The ground was covered with tens of thousands of creature corpses.
The grass was no longer visible. Everywhere was buried beneath torn organs and shattered flesh.
They hadn't merely killed the creatures.
They had turned their insides outward.
The smell of soot rising from the burned houses mixed with the heavy metallic scent hanging in the air.
Chicot licked a drop of blood from her finger and giggled.
— Premium iron-flavored cherry juice... What do you think, dear Forveira?
Forveira stared at her expressionlessly.
The right side of her black hair was shaved. Dressed entirely in black gothic clothing, with dark violet eyes, she looked unnaturally calm even within this hellscape.
— They made too much noise while dying. Hopefully more monsters come to investigate. And don't drink too much. We'd rather not have you getting drunk right now.
Chicot burst out laughing.
But the laugh wasn't cheerful.
It was unsettling.
Like a child trying to have fun without fully understanding how fun was supposed to work.
At that moment, both of their gazes shifted toward the tree standing at the center of the village.
Its trunk was pure white, while cyan-blue veins pulsed beneath the bark. Crimson-red fruits swayed gently from its branches.
The trunk trembled faintly.
As though it had a heartbeat.
The Blood Fruit Tree.
Frenzy lowered the axe from his shoulder and drove it into the trunk.
THUNK.
A dark crimson liquid, thicker than blood itself, erupted from the wound.
The tree suddenly began to scream.
A muffled cry filled with agony echoed throughout the village while the cyan veins slowly began to dim.
Frenzy didn't hesitate.
He delivered a second strike immediately.
And the tree fell silent.
Completely.
Chicot suddenly sprang from the pile of corpses and began filling her flask with the crimson liquid.
— Hehehe...
A mischievous grin spread across her face as she secured the flask inside her backpack.
Frenzy sighed.
— Let's hope Rasona doesn't catch you this time.
Chicot stuck out her tongue.
— That only happened once... and it hurt.
Remembering the old smack to the back of her head made her smile involuntarily.
Meanwhile, Forveira was gathering the fruits from the fallen Blood Fruit Tree while using her cleaver-like tool to separate the tree's fibers.
— Alright. This is more than enough.
Chicot placed the flask inside her bag.
Then she crouched beside an orc corpse and shoved her hand into its chest.
CRACK.
The sound of breaking bone echoed through the ruined village.
A few seconds later, she ripped the orc's heart out by the roots.
The heart was still warm.
Chicot admired it with both hands before flashing a grin toward Frenzy.
— Might as well bring this along too. Let's get going before Yuko ends up naked.
Yuko still hadn't adjusted to his new class.
The mentor he had expected to guide him, Carnifex, was sitting at a corner table, calmly drinking tea while staring out the window.
The classroom itself...
Was a complete disaster.
No one remained in their seats.
Some students were chatting.
Others were challenging each other on top of the Trial Altar.
Actually...
Calling it "challenging" was being generous.
Most of the attacks were clearly intended to draw blood or leave permanent injuries.
The sounds of clashing metal, shouting, and blood dripping onto the floor blended together into what seemed to be the classroom's natural atmosphere.
— So what exactly are you waiting for, Yuko?
Yuko nearly jumped out of his skin.
He still wasn't used to how casually Aster Astrel spoke to him.
— Um... I don't really know what I'm supposed to do.
Aster began speaking calmly.
— First, you should tell me what you're cap—
Carnifex suddenly interrupted.
His voice sounded almost childishly playful.
— Never trust a Ritualist, Yuko. Especially not Astrel.
Yuko looked at him innocently.
— But aren't you a Ritualist too? Wouldn't that mean I shouldn't trust what you're saying? But if that's true, then it also means I can trust you because—
He paused.
— Wait... why is the world round?
Yuko's face instantly turned bright red.
Then he collapsed.
Silence.
A moment later, Genom burst into laughter.
— Amazing. He died. That's incredible. Astercakes is alone again.
Volteir elbowed Genom in the chest.
— You wouldn't die if you were a little nicer, Genom.
Genom sighed dramatically.
— Fine...
He glanced at her.
— But only because you asked.
Volteir giggled.
At that exact moment, someone knocked on the classroom door.
Carnifex spoke calmly.
— Come in, Miss Rasona.
The door opened.
The moment Rasona Phywell stepped inside, her eyes landed on Yuko's unconscious body lying on the floor.
The expression on her face immediately turned hopeless.
— I need to take Yuko for his uniform measurements. I also need to ask if he has any special design requests. I assume that won't be a problem?
Carnifex smiled faintly.
— Of course not. Go on, Yuko. Escape while you still can.
Yuko immediately sprang to his feet.
— Rasona-senpai!
He practically flew to her side.
As they walked through the corridors, Yuko continuously complained about his class and his teacher.
Rasona merely laughed and replied:
— You'll get used to it. I've seen much worse.
Eventually, they stopped before a gigantic door covered in heavy locks.
Beside it stood a massive wolf-like creature covered in black fur.
A colossal key rested in its hands.
Fenris.
Yuko stared at the door before looking toward Rasona.
— Please tell me you're not about to make me solve a puzzle.
Rasona burst out laughing.
— Don't worry. Fenris only brought the key here.
Then she turned toward him.
— Go ahead. Open the Creation Chamber.
Yuko scratched his head.
— The Creation... what?
The door opened.
Everything inside was pitch black.
Except for a glowing blue sphere floating in the center of the room.
Yuko's eyes immediately lit up.
— WHOA. FLOATING BLUE SPHERE.
Rasona instantly became annoyed.
— Why don't you react like that when I do cool things?!
A moment later, both of them began running circles around Fenris.
Fenris released a long, exhausted sigh.
— I don't get paid enough for this.
Chapter 2 – End