After making a kettle of tea, I poured two cups for us at the kitchen table and summoned [Deceiver] forth.

There was only one form that [Deceiver] could use to speak to me. As the black half-mask of [Regretful Devourer] formed over the lower half of my face, [Deceiver] condensed out of my shadow. Lightly, it settled into the seat opposite of me.

[Jeong. Eunseok.]

“Yeah, evening to you too.”

As with the last few times I’d done this, [Deceiver] started our conversation by asking, [What. Do you. Regret. Today?]

“I’m regretting that I’m running low on this tea, and yet I’m still giving a whole cup away to you. Ah, my heart aches. Anyways, this one is chamomile with honey and lemon. It’s not the same as a classic bamboo or pine leaf tea, but Iyiria’s herbal stuff is still pretty good. Give it a try.”

[Deceiver] gazed at me a long moment before sticking its tongue out to lap at its cup of tea. I took that to mean that my answer was good enough to justify its presence here as the [Regretful Devourer].

It wasn’t very talkative, so I leaned my elbows on the table and continued the conversation myself.

“I’m going to stage a terrorist attack on the noble families so that Veric can play the hero. I think it should solve a lot of her immediate problems.”

[You partnered. With. The red haired girl.]

“Yeah. Her attitude is kind of strange, and I think the things she’s related to might be a bit dangerous? But so far she’s been clear about the risks of working with her and has left the final choice to me. And she hasn’t pressured me into anything either, so… I think it’s okay to give it a shot.” I sighed. “I’m more worried about how cleanly I can pull off my attack on Veratrum Row. I can ask Etienne to investigate as much as I like, but there will always be unknowns. Who knows how many hidden dragons there are in the city?”

[You. Are still. Weak.]

I made a cute expression at it. “So can you help me out somehow?”

[Deceiver] glanced at me disdainfully and didn’t respond.

“At the very least, I’m pretty sure that the really powerful people like Principal Sun have better things to do with their time than guard a rich person neighborhood, so I shouldn’t have to worry about them as long as I’m quick. As for everyone else… I’m planning to rank up once the exam is over, so hopefully that will level the playing field a bit.”

[Or. It may grant. New trials.]

Yeah, I really wasn’t looking forward to whatever the Tripartite had planned for me.

“Once my preparations are in place, I want to use [Bound Prophet] to check for unknown variables and make my final decisions based on that. That’ll help too. But no matter what it shows, I still plan to find a way to help Veric a little.”

[You don’t. Want. To use it. Now?]

“If I use it to peek a week into the future, I can’t use it for a week, you know? A lot can change in a week. I’d rather use it on a shorter time frame. It’s better for controlling variables and keeping the skill maximally available. Besides, I don’t want to develop an overreliance on ‘seeing the future.’”

[Why? The world. Is dangerous. Future knowledge. Will help.]

If that was true, then why did it feel like Acacius had lived so miserably?

Even if I could understand him, I didn’t want to be like him.

Instead of explaining that, I said, “Why depend on [Bound Prophet] when I could depend on you? If my World Proof isn’t the best, then whose is?”

[Deceiver] snorted. [Silver-tongued. Talker.]

But it didn’t reject me playing around, did it? I grinned. “How strong are you, anyways? Can you do anything for the right price? If I let you out to play, you think you could handle a good challenge?”

[Such. As?]

I thought for a moment.

“Luka when he was going crazy, maybe. Do you think you’d be able to kill him as [Devourer]?”

[Deceiver] flexed its claws without scratching the table, a tell-tale sign that it was thinking.

[Do. You. Love him?]

“What kind of leap is that…”

[The greater. Your love. For someone. The stronger I am. Against them.]

It narrowed its eyes in a smile.

[If you want. To know. How you feel. All you need. To do. Is ask me. To hurt them.]

I wanted to say that I didn’t have a habit of going around hurting the people I cared about, but remembering how decisive I’d been in piercing Luka’s heart, I fell silent.

[You. Regret. Hurting him.]

I didn’t want to say that. “If I hadn’t done it, things could have turned out badly.”

[Then you. Would do it. Again.]

I liked my honest answer to this one even less than the other.

[Deceiver]’s smile curled like the blade of a knife.

[So you see. This form. Is suitable. For you. After all.]

That stung me more than I cared to admit. I was careful to keep my voice light-hearted when I whined, “Hey, I called you out to spend time with you and give you my tea. Don’t go hurting my feelings like that.”

[Deceiver] didn’t apologize. It would be strange if it did, since it was just acting in line with its role, after all. But a moment later, its long tail brushed against my leg gently under the table, silky and cool, as if trying to soothe me.

I smiled half-heartedly.

“Honestly… it’s true I have a lot to regret. Most of those regrets would be hard for you to eat, though. Makes it kinda hard to think of a way to call you out.”

I lowered my eyes to look at my reflection in my own cup of tea.

“One thing I definitely regret, though, is that I can’t call you out like this around others without worrying about exposing you. If anyone ever realized I was copying Linden’s World Proof in some way, things could get really dangerous, really fast. But it still feels unfair to keep you hidden like this.”

[Deceiver] laughed.

[A deceiver. Is meant. To be hidden.]

“But still,” I said. “It would’ve been nice if I could’ve openly walked around the city with you.”

[Deceiver] looked at me for a long moment. Its tongue snaked out to lap up the last of its tea.

[Perhaps. That day. Will only come. When. Jeong Eunseok. Shows himself. To the world.]

After that, [Deceiver] kept me silent company as I finished the last of my tea. It watched as I caught Clover from where it was bathing in the moonlight on the windowsill and bravely forced myself to send my very first text via seam.

Me: How are the caterpillars doing?

The seam chimed with a response moments later.

Zaire: hey acacius! (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑

Zaire: caterpillars are doing well! eating lots. not getting any fatter tho. might be a long grub phase. ૮ •⇁- ა none of em have died on our watch yet tho!

Zaire: hows the seam? u treating her well?

Me: It’s fond of light and lamps.

Okay, that was enough texting for today. It was enough to prove that I could do it. I turned it off and stroked the seam until its elytra and wings folded back to cover the screen. I placed it on the nightstand, under a patch of moonlight, and watched it scuttle around for a while before preparing to sleep.

When I laid down in bed, [Deceiver] climbed up and laid down next to me. The mattress dipped under its weight.

I thought about reaching out to touch its ears, but it didn’t seem like the kind of thing a [Regretful Devourer] would allow me to do. Maybe after we got to know each other better.

“Good night, [Deceiver].”

It didn’t respond.

As I drifted into sleep, I dreamed that something cool rubbed against my cheek.

When I woke up the next morning, [Deceiver] wasn’t there.

It was the day of the exam, and so, I left the dorm early. Half an hour before school officially began, I met with Tarascus at his workshop.

There, he presented me with a plain, circular gold pin with a red jewel in the middle. He emphasized to me that the final version would be more aesthetically pleasing than this before having me pin it onto my coat and tap the jewel.

The gold metal around the jewel instantly dispersed into hundreds of tiny, metallic threads that wove themselves through my clothes like delicate embroidery. It did have the side effect of embroidering my shirt and coat together. However, Tarascus’ creation functioned as promised. When I activated [Incarnation]’s transformation, the wings passed easily through my clothes without ripping them.

I was very grateful that I wouldn’t have to deal with the ripped shirt problem during the exam.

“Observe its performance during testing today!” Tarascus shouted. “Then inform me of any necessary modifications posthaste. This shall be my weekend masterpiece.”

“How should I get in contact with you?”

“You may send your missives to my seam!”

Having obtained another social contact, I bid farewell and left for class.

Because of the upcoming exam, everyone was restless during homeroom. Predictably, most of what Professor Raoul had to announce was related to the exam. He distributed wristbands made of woven string and jade to everyone in class; symbols resembling oracle bone script or ancient dynasty’s royal seals were carved into the jade.

He demonstrated how to wear it over an acupoint in our arms, explaining that the wristband was our ticket to enter the Illusion Stage, the way that the professors would track our achievements during the exam, and also the protection mechanism that would eject us from the Illusion Stage if we sustained a dangerous or fatal blow.

Apparently, the wristband surrounded us with a semi-permeable barrier that reacted to stimulus that exceeded safe thresholds. For example, it wouldn’t react to hits that bruised, but it would to something strong enough to break bones; it wouldn’t activate in cold temperatures, but it would if the temperature dropped too low for too long. Once the safety barrier reacted, the wristband would transport us out of the Illusion Stage whether we liked it or not.

It was absolutely forbidden to take off the wristband, take anyone else’s wristband, or to damage it in any way. It was, however, okay to trigger someone else’s safety ejection mechanism. Anyone who was “eliminated” in this way would have to wait out a fifteen-minute penalty period before the teachers would return them to the Illusion Stage at a neutral location of the student’s choosing.

After reviewing the rules of the exam once more, Professor Raoul brought everyone to one of the school’s auditoriums.

All the other classes in Year 2 of the Governance Track were gathered there, too. Professor Raoul told us to find our exam partners and wait on the sidelines while the Illusion Stage was set up.

Instead of looking for Rhoswen, I watched the teachers roll in a miniature pagoda decorated with mystic beasts on the side. One of the teachers, a scruffy, slouching guy who would’ve belonged right in my hometown if he’d just had dirtier clothes, unenthusiastically placed his hands on the device. The patterns on the device began lighting up, starting from the lowest “floor” before spreading upwards.

Someone stepped into my personal space. I glanced to the side. It was Veric, and behind her, of course, was Luka.

“Morning, Acacius,” she said, while Luka gave me a silent nod of greeting. “Are you ready for the exam?”

“Ready as I can be,” I said dryly. “What are you here for?”

“Can’t we come say hi?”

“You sure you’re not spying on the competition?”

“Yeah, since you look so prepared.” Veric rolled her eyes. “Who did you partner with, by the way? Roxana, by any chance?”

I looked at her like she was crazy. “Why would I partner with Roxana?”

She blinked. “I just thought you’d want to work with someone you knew you could trust.”

“Okay,” I said. “Setting aside the idea of ‘trusting Roxana.’ Do you think one day is enough to know and trust someone?”

“…What happened wasn’t just any ordinary day, though.”

“It’s still one day.”

“So who are you partnering with?” Luka said, before we could argue any further. “Is it someone we know?”

I thought about not saying anything to be an asshole, but I had to find my partner before the exam started anyways, so they’d find out eventually. “It’s Rhoswen. From Practical Combat class.”

Luka studied me seriously. “I didn’t know you two were familiar.”

“We’re not.”

Rhoswen’s cool voice floated to us through the chatter. “Don’t say that, Acacius. You’ll make me sad.”

Emerging from the throng, she appeared by my side, brushing aside a strand of her long red hair. Through half-lidded eyes, she sized up Luka and Veric. “Hello, you two. Acacius’ friends now, I presume?”

“Er. Yes,” said Veric. “We got to know each other during the field trip…”

“How envious. To have the opportunity to tie someone so capable to your side.”

I gave her a wary side-eye. “If you say things like that, I’ll think you’ve got ulterior motives for working with me.”

“Because I do.”

At my frown, Rhoswen’s eyes narrowed like she was suppressing a smile.

“Did you bring everything?” she asked.

Thinking of the collar in the pocket of my coat, I held back a grimace. “Yeah.”

“When do you plan to make your preparations?”

I sighed. “Let’s wait a little longer.” Better not to wear it more than necessary…

Rhoswen nodded. “Then, while we are waiting, shall we go over everything one more time? Please excuse us, Luka, Verica.”

With a polite nod, she gestured for me to follow her and walked off.

Veric’s envious gaze followed her as she went. “It took so many near-death experiences for us to get along with you, but you cooperate with her so easily.”

“Don’t be jealous,” I said. “I worked with you all before I trusted you, too.”

Hm. There was too much implied in that sentence. I hurried after Rhoswen, grateful for the excuse to leave before we could talk about anything else.

She’d found a quiet spot by the wall of the auditorium, watching the teachers set up an enclosed cloth booth next to the Illusion Stage. Despite what she’d said earlier, she didn’t actually show any signs of wanting to review the plan. Did she just want to separate me from other teams or something?

I leaned against the wall next to her and watched the teachers’ work with her.

“Attention, everyone!” one of the teachers called. “We will now begin with the resource and territory selection process! The selection will proceed in the order of total number of tokens, then by overall grades. Come to the booth with your partner when your name is called. First up, Luka and Verica!”

“So what did you want from me when you agreed to work together?” I said.

“Not much,” Rhoswen said calmly. “I just wanted you to feel indebted to me.”

“…Indebted?”

Rhoswen gave me another one of her not-smiles.

“Yes. So I won’t ask anything, and I won’t demand anything. I just hope that when you get what you want, you’ll remember that you couldn’t have done it without me.”

That didn’t feel like the attitude you’d have towards just anyone.

What exactly was that opportunity Acacius had given her in the past? Was she acting like this because of their history, or was it a recent change from my increase in value after solving KP-04?

No matter how I felt, it was too late to reconsider our partnership. All I could do was see it through to the end.

“Second, Rhoswen and Acacius Duval!” the teacher called.

“Come on,” I muttered, pushing off the wall. “We can talk about this later.”

Inside the booth, Professor Raoul presented us with the territory map and beginning resources. I spent my tokens exactly as discussed; Rhoswen’s beginning token count would be used to cover the cost of moving across territory borders.

Professor Raoul furrowed his brows at my selection, but carefully input everything into his jade disc anyhow. He looked at me like he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just said, “Good luck with the exam, you two. And… Remember, all things should be done in moderation.”

Now what could he have meant by that?

After everyone had made their pre-exam selections, the professors gathered us to enter the Illusion Stage, pair by pair. I was once again called up with Rhoswen. They instructed us to tap our wristbands against the open gate of the pagoda’s highest floor.

Space blurred around me, and I felt a strong sense of vertigo before catching myself on my feet and looking around.

Rhoswen and I were now standing in a wide, open space with a tundra-like biome, next to a jade stele that was supposed to be the territory hub. A sports field’s length away from us, the tundra gave way to short, rocky cliffs and a large body of water that stretched away to the horizon. Cold winds blew over the silver waves. A miniature black castle, around the height of an old ginkgo tree, was perched on the cliffs. In the distance were shimmering green walls of light that rose to the sky — the borders that demarcated the edge of our territory.

I squatted down to touch the tundra plants. They felt pretty real, even though the teachers said that everything here was a construct created by the Illusion Stage. Given my world’s history with it, I didn’t feel great that the Illusion Stage constructed artificial alternate spaces from an energy principle I didn’t understand… But as long as it didn’t involve systematically killing babies or something, it was probably okay, right?

When I tapped the jade embedded in my wristband, a floating screen of light appeared before me, counting down the minutes until the exam officially began.

“How long should we let the others grow before we begin hunting?” Rhoswen asked.

“You think fifteen minutes will be enough?”

“Ten,” Rhoswen suggested. “If possible, we should target them after they’ve gained tokens but before they’ve reinvested it in developing their territories.”

“I’ll keep an eye out.”

Rhoswen nodded and began to make her preparations, buckling on her leather harness and checking over its various dangling straps.

It was about time, wasn’t it? Sighing internally, I turned my back to her before putting on the collar. Thankfully, the high, stiff collars of Acacius’ dress shirts hid it pretty well, not to mention the fringe from the back of his hair. It seemed pretty unlikely that anyone would notice it unless they got close.

Next, I double checked that Tarascus’ brooch was fixed in place and that the wristband was worn correctly. When the countdown on the wristband’s display hit zero, I activated [Incarnation] and let my wings come out.

The territory size was pretty big, but I could faintly feel a few perspectives around the limits of my range. “I’ll go ahead and scout,” I told Rhoswen before taking off to circle the territory.

Through our neighbors’ eyes, I saw them interacting with their jade steles, reading through the floating golden characters that appeared over its surface. There was information about their territories’ resources, statistics, and suggested development milestones — all stuff that felt way too complicated for me.

When I circled back to Rhoswen’s location and landed, she asked, “Which direction shall we go first?”

Feeling our mental connection, I focused on transmitting the locations of the perspectives I’d sensed before pointing south. “The ones over there seem like the fattest sheep to shear.”

Rhoswen smiled. She took her bow off her back and strung it, bending the wood into a great arch.

“A pity that the barriers block cross-territory attacks,” she said. “I’d love to try shooting them from here.”

“How do you want to go in?”

“Position one. We’ll fly in high with the sun to our back. I’ll shoot as soon as we cross the border.”

I reached out and placed my hands on her shoulder, trailing my fingers lightly until I found the straps attached to her harness there. Taking hold of them firmly, I said, “Ready?”

“Let’s go.”

I kicked off into the air, catching the wind with my wings.

It didn’t take long to reach the nearest border of our territory. Rhoswen pulled back the string of her bow. The barrier tingled as it passed over our skin. Her wristband flashed as it automatically deducted a token for her passage; mine had probably done the same.

We’d barely crossed over before Rhoswen released her bowstring with a twang.

The wind hissed. Moments later, two perspectives disappeared from my senses, and in Rhoswen’s perspective, two figures vanished from the terrain in a flash of white light.

Laughing gently, Rhoswen lowered her bow.

“Let the hunt begin.”

Chapter 49 Back to Index