The training field remained loud even after Shido's match ended.
Students gathered in small groups around the arena, whispering among themselves as the next pair stepped forward. The atmosphere carried a mix of excitement and tension.
Mock-Battles were not only a way to train but also a way for students to gauge each other's strength.
For Shido, however, the excitement had already faded.
He leaned casually against the metal railing surrounding the field, watching the next duel begin with only mild interest.
Two students from my class were now facing each other.
One possessed an obvious enhancement ability—his muscles slightly larger than normal, veins faintly visible along his arms. The other student had an ability related to speed, his movements sharp and quick.
The fight began.
To most students, the match looked intense.
To Shido, it was predictable.
'The enhancement type will win,' he thought calmly.
The reasoning was simple.
Speed types from upper levels often relied too much on quick movements without enough power behind their attacks.
Meanwhile, enhancement users could withstand several hits before retaliating with a single decisive blow.
Sure enough—
After nearly thirty seconds of exchanges, the enhancement user caught the speed-type student mid-step and slammed him to the ground hard.
Victory.
Shido sighed quietly.
Exactly as expected.
His thoughts drifted back to the lesson earlier that morning.
Abilities.
Levels.
Upgrading.
Everything about this world's power system still felt strange to him.
Instructor Halden had explained that abilities were manifestations of the soul, yet the way society structured their understanding of power felt incomplete.
Almost… artificial.
'Like someone simplified the truth,' Shido thought. 'Or perhaps—Someone hid part of it.'
He folded his arms, eyes narrowing slightly as he continued watching the matches.
Another duel started.
Then another.
Some were short.
Some lasted longer.
But none of them truly impressed him.
At best, the students displayed basic control over their abilities.
And for some unknown reason Rei Kanade didn't participate nor did instructor Halden force her.
The next battle had an individual with a fire-generation ability.
Then one with a minor gravity-type ability that could slightly increase weight around an opponent.
One with a defensive ability that hardened their skin.
Each of them belonged clearly to one of the known classifications the teacher had mentioned earlier:
Enhancement.
Emission.
Creation.
Transformation.
Control.
Perception.
Support.
Seven major ability types.
Every ability in the world were categorized under one of those branches.
Yet the more Shido observed them—
The more he felt something was missing.
'If abilities truly come from the soul… Why do they behave so uniformly? Aren't Souls supposed to be unique? Yet many abilities looked almost identical. Several students had enhancement abilities. While several had speed-based abilities. And sqome even possessed nearly identical techniques.
It felt too… standardized.
His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden voice.
"Well, well. Looks like someone's deep in thought."
Shido glanced sideways.
A tall student with lavender curls stood a few meters away, leaning against the railing just like him.
His posture was relaxed.
His expression calm.
But his eyes icy blue eyes carried a sharp, calculating look.
Shido recognized him immediately.
Akuma.
Shido turned his gaze back toward the arena.
"Just watching."
Akuma chuckled softly.
"That's obvious."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"But the way you're watching isn't normal."
Shido didn't respond.
Akuma continued speaking.
"Most students watch Mock-Battles because they're excited… or because they're trying to learn something."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"You're watching like someone evaluating an entire power system."
Shido finally looked at him again.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Shido shrugged "Maybe I'm just curious."
Akuma smiled faintly. "Curiosity is good."
He shifted his gaze toward the arena where another fight had begun.
"You handled Takeshi pretty easily earlier."
Shido didn't deny it.
"It wasn't difficult."
Akuma laughed quietly.
"Most new students don't say something like that."
He turned slightly toward Shido.
"You're not from a normal background, are you?"
Shido didn't answer directly.
Instead, he asked his own question.
"And you?"
Akuma's smile widened.
"That's a good response."
For several seconds, they simply watched the match unfolding below.
A student with a flame ability clashed against someone using a defensive barrier.
The heat from the flames shimmered across the arena.
Akuma spoke again. "You're analyzing abilities, aren't you?"
Shido remained silent.
Akuma continued.
"I noticed earlier. Your eyes follow movements differently than everyone else's."
He tapped the railing lightly with his finger. "You're not watching the fight."
"You're watching how abilities interact."
Shido finally responded. "Maybe."
Akuma looked amused. "You're careful with your words."
Shido ignored the comment.
Instead, he asked something that had been on his mind since earlier.
"You've been here longer than me, right?"
"Three years."
"Then let me ask you something."
Akuma tilted his head slightly. "Go ahead."
Shido's gaze returned to the arena.
"Have you ever felt like the way abilities are explained… isn't the full truth?"
Akuma's smile froze.
Just for a fraction of a second.
But Shido noticed.
The moment passed quickly, and Akuma leaned back against the railing again.
"That's a dangerous question."
Shido said nothing.
Akuma sighed softly.
"Most people don't think about things like that."
His eyes moved toward the training field.
"They accept what they're told."
Shido spoke quietly. "But you don't."
Akuma chuckled. "No."
He crossed his arms. "I don't."
For a few moments, neither of them spoke again.
The arena echoed with the sounds of another battle ending.
Instructer Halden's voice announced the winner.
Students applauded lightly.
Then Akuma asked a question of his own.
"Why are you asking?"
Shido answered honestly.
"Because too many things don't add up."
He began counting them silently in his mind.
Levels decreasing from five to one.
Abilities being "upgraded."
Historical records missing details.
Wars that felt incomplete.
Even the way abilities were categorized.
Everything felt structured.
Organized.
But also…
Limited.
Akuma studied Shido's expression carefully. "You noticed it quickly."
Shido glanced at him. "So you noticed it too?"
Akuma laughed again. "Of course."
His eyes darkened slightly. "Anyone strong enough eventually notices."
Shido remained quiet.
Akuma continued.
"The problem is… noticing doesn't mean you can do anything about it."
"Why not?"
Akuma looked at him with mild surprise.
"You're bold."
He pointed toward the arena.
"Everything you see here—the school, the training system, the ability classifications it's all part of a structure."
"A structure built by who?"
Akuma shrugged. "That's the question. I once knew something who wantef to know that, and oh he did."
"And... what happened to him?" Questioned Shido with an audible interest.
"His no more with us."
"Ohhh...," was all that Shido could say as he continued to watch the next duel.
Two students clashed violently in the center of the arena.
Their abilities collided in bursts of light and energy.
"So something's being hidden?" Shido asked.
Akuma didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he looked toward the single tall tower behind Douma High as if giving a hint.
After several seconds he looked away, then he spoke. "I think… the world used to be different."
Shido's eyes sharpened slightly. "Used to?"
Akuma nodded. "History books mention several ancient wars."
"But the details are vague."
"Too vague."
Shido remembered thinking the same thing earlier in class.
Akuma continued. "Entire centuries of history summarized in a few pages."
"Civilizations that supposedly vanished without explanation."
"Wars that changed the world… but somehow nobody knows exactly how."
He looked back at Shido. "Does that sound normal to you?"
Shido shook his head slowly. "No."
Akuma smiled faintly. "Exactly."
Another duel ended.
Students cheered again.
The training field remained lively.
Yet the conversation between the two students carried a completely different tone.
Shido spoke again. "Then why doesn't anyone question it?"
Akuma answered immediately. "Because most people don't care."
He gestured toward the crowd.
"They want strength."
"They want status."
"They want to drop from Level Five to Level One."
His voice lowered slightly. "But very few people care about what lies beyond that."
Shido considered those words carefully.
"What lies beyond Level One…" he murmured.
Akuma's expression shifted slightly.
"See?"
"You're already asking the dangerous questions."
Shido looked back toward the arena.
"Do you know the answer?"
Akuma shook his head. "No."
Then he smiled again.
"But I'm trying to find it."
The two stood in silence as another battle began.
This time, a student with a lightning-type emission ability fought against someone with a control-type ability that manipulated metal.
Sparks flashed across the arena.
Metal fragments twisted through the air.
Shido watched closely.
Not the spectacle—but the patterns.
How their abilities reacted.
How they consumed physical energy.
How the users controlled them.
Akuma noticed. "You really are analyzing everything."
Shido didn't deny it.
"If abilities come from the soul… then the way people use them should reveal something about their nature."
Akuma raised an eyebrow. "That's an interesting theory."
Shido shrugged slightly. "Maybe."
Another explosion of lightning echoed across the arena.
The match ended seconds later.
Students applauded again.
Instructor Halden announced the winner.
Akuma pushed himself away from the railing. "Well," he said casually.
"This has been an interesting conversation."
Shido looked at him. "Leaving already?"
Akuma nodded. "I've seen enough for today."
He turned and began walking toward the exit of the training grounds.
After a few steps, he stopped.
Without turning around, he spoke again.
"Shido Urazaki."
Shido didn't respond verbally.
But his attention sharpened.
Akuma continued.
"You're going to cause a lot of trouble here. But... don't be like a certain person i once knew."
Then he finally looked back over his shoulder.
His faint smile returned. "And yet I'm looking forward to seeing it."
With that—
He left.
Shido watched him disappear through the training hall doors.
For a moment, the sounds of the arena faded into the background.
"Just who are you Akuma?"
There was something strange about him.
Not just his words.
But the way he observed things.
He didn't look like a normal Highschool student.
He looked like someone searching for answers.
The same answers Shido had begun questioning.
Shido exhaled slowly and turned his attention back to the arena.
Another Mock-Battle had already started.
But his mind was no longer focused on the battles.
Instead, one thought repeated quietly in the back of his mind.
'Something about this world is wrong.'
The Abilities, the Levels and History, even the structure of society.
Pieces were missing.
And the more he thought about it—
The more certain he became.
This world's story was incomplete.
And somewhere behind that missing history…
There had to be a reason.
Shido's eyes narrowed slightly as he continued watching the Mock-Battles.
For now, i have to keep observing.
Keep learning. Keep growing and most importantly i have to keep Adapting to everything against me.
Because eventually—
The truth of this world would reveal itself.