Pathro and Kiligaku finally stepped out of the staff room, looking like two zombies who'd been dragged through the night. Which, to be fair… they kinda had. After all, they'd spent the entire night training in the Icetomb.
Walking alongside them were two girls who looked annoyingly fresh in comparison. One had long crimson hair styled with flawless confidence, matching the sharp red of her eyes , Kaile. The other sported shorter blonde hair with a simpler cut, her cool blue eyes giving her a calm, composed vibe, Kasumi.
"Man, all these boring tasks are too much," Pathro groaned, flipping through a stack of documents stuffed in his envelope. "Couldn't they just handle this themselves?"
Kaile shot him a look. "That is your job as president. What's the point of being head boy if they do everything for you?"
Pathro sighed dramatically. "I thought my whole purpose was to be the bridge between cadets, not do hostel damage assessments, choose my successor, or what was it again…? Right, organize a goodbye meeting. They already know we're leaving!"
Kasumi chimed in, calm as ever. "You're just tired from training. And you're not doing this alone. All four of us are presidents, remember? We're sharing the workload."
Kiligaku dragged his feet forward. "That doesn't make it any better… Can't you two just, I don't know, cover for us? You know, like good friends would?"
Kaile didn't even hesitate. "Oh, hell no. Not even if your arms and legs were broken." Then, with a devilish smirk, she added, "But… for the right price, I might help."
Pathro shot her a suspicious look. "I feel like I'm gonna regret asking this, but… what price?"
Kaile lifted a finger, ready to negotiate. "A quarter of your first salary once we become soldiers. It's a pre–"
She didn't even get to finish. Pathro and Kiligaku instantly bolted ahead with renewed energy. Pathro laughed under his breath, "Yeah, imagine giving her a quarter of my salary. Not happening."
Kiligaku muttered, "As if. I'd rather tear the money in half."
Kaile and Kasumi watched them suddenly sprint away, both taken aback.
"What the heck was that?" Kaile blinked.
Kasumi shrugged. "Clearly they don't want to give you money. Guess that's all the motivation they needed."
Kaile crossed her arms. "Idiots… but at least they're energetic enough to finish their tasks."Kasumi suddenly paused, eyes widening as a thought hit her. "Wait… didn't they head into that freezing hell before midnight?"
Kaile raised a brow. "Yeah, they left around eleven. Why?"
Kasumi folded her arms, connecting the dots. "That means they have no idea about the Tokyo incident… or the moon explosion."
Kaile's expression shifted as the realization sank in. "Oh right… that's gonna blow their minds." She glanced up at the sky. The moon was faintly visible despite the daytime haze — not glowing like at night, but still unmistakably there. "Although," she added, exhaling, "it's gonna be a bit hard to explain that the moon blew up when Sergeant Taneki just… made a new one seconds later."
She stared at the pale sphere for a moment, as if half-expecting it to glitch out of existence.
....
On Okinawa Island, the Academy had a student board , a structured lineup of cadet representatives responsible for bridging the gap between students and instructors. Pathro served as the Male President, Kiligaku as the Vice Male President, Kaile as the Female President, and Kasumi as the Female Vice President. Together, they formed the top tier of the board — the four cadets trusted to handle communication, decisions, and crisis management within the Academy.
And now, with today being their final day both on the island and as cadets, the responsibilities stacked up fast. There was a mountain of tasks to finish, traditions to uphold, and final duties to carry out before they officially stepped into the next stage of their lives.
---
In another scene, Taneki stepped out of a sleek black car just outside a lavish gate. The driver leaned out through the window and asked, "Sir, what time should I pick you up?"
Taneki shook his head. "No need. Go home and get some rest."
The driver practically lit up. "Yes, sir!"
As the car rolled away, Taneki walked toward the gate, grumbling internally, They really insist on making us use cars… when I could've gotten here in seconds. 'Formalities,' they say. Irritating.
The moment Taneki reached the entrance, the bodyguards stationed there straightened up in perfect sync, instantly recognizing him. They saluted sharply. Taneki waved it off with a relaxed smile. "You're doing good work, soldiers. Keep it up."
They opened the gate, revealing a palace-like estate on the other side. The yard was massive, a field of star grass, meticulously trimmed flower beds, soft fountains scattered across the lawn, and even a swimming pool that gleamed like glass. Whoever owned this place had wealth to spare… and then some.
Taneki eyed the long row of ultra-expensive cars parked nearby and muttered, "Yep… he's basically the definition of greed."
His gaze shifted when he spotted the man he'd come to see the Minister, sitting calmly on a bench beneath a shady tree. The Minister must've noticed him too, but Taneki didn't bother with normal walking speed. In an instant, he flashed forward and appeared right in front of the man.
"Good day, Minister. You seem well."
The Minister jumped, clutching his chest. "I told you to walk like a normal human being around here! One of these days you're going to give me a heart attack."
Taneki sat beside him. "You'd understand how painful it is moving at that pace when you literally don't need to."
The Minister sighed. "Painful or not, it was… unfortunate. Being that fast, yet still arriving late to the Tokyo incident."
Taneki paused, his expression dimming for a moment as he remembered. "That wasn't a speed issue. I moved the moment I sensed the Zunan, and the time it took me to reach Tokyo was exactly zero seconds. But by then everything was already over. Not even infinite speed can rewind a moment that's already gone."
The Minister nodded slowly. "I know. That's why I called you here. I want to understand why you destroyed the moon… and why you think you couldn't sense the creature at first. You're the Vice Captain of the First Division. I find it hard to believe a normal Zunan could stay off your radar."
Taneki leaned back, recalling the faint yellow aura that lingered around the ruined Tokyo hall. "As for the moon… I didn't have a choice. The Zunan I fought is known for insane regeneration. If even a single cell survives, it'll regenerate in less than the time it takes to blink. And it's tough — really tough. I needed overwhelming firepower, enough to reduce every one of its cells to nothing."
The Minister frowned. "A high-regeneration Zunan… what level was it?"
Taneki shrugged. "In terms of overall strength? Honestly, not that impressive. Its only real problem is infinite stamina and regeneration. They're common in the Delay Universe. Good thing that realm has infinite celestial bodies… I lost track of how many planets and moons I've blown up just to get rid of them."
The Minister's jaw dropped. "You've destroyed entire planets just to kill them, and you're saying they aren't that strong? I… suppose I should be grateful only five thousand people died. It could have been far worse."
Taneki's tone shifted, growing colder. "I wouldn't be grateful just yet. I still don't know how that Zunan got here… or how it avoided my detection."
The Minister stiffened. "What are you implying?"
Taneki stood up, eyes narrowing as he gazed out across the yard. "My division wouldn't let an Ichigan slip through the Delay Universe. And if one did, I would've sensed it instantly. Instead, it slipped in unnoticed… and struck a major population center." He paused, voice dropping to a hard certainty. "This is just a hunch. But I believe someone brought it here on purpose. And whoever they are… we haven't seen the last of them."
The Minister narrowed his eyes. "You're not the type to jump to conclusions off a gut feeling. You saw something, didn't you?"
Taneki hesitated for a moment before replying, "I'm not sure what I saw. And even if I did understand it, you wouldn't. Not fully." His voice dropped, serious and steady. "I don't have evidence that someone orchestrated this… but it's the only explanation that fits. Someone knew how to slip past every one of my senses — and the senses of every soldier on duty."
He lifted his gaze toward the sky, eyeing the pale moon he himself had recreated after obliterating the original. "The public wants answers, but if we tell them we have none… or worse, that we suspect some unknown mastermind? It'll cause chaos. They'll panic. They'll lose trust." He glanced at the Minister. "As Minister of Defense, your job is to tell them something that keeps them calm without crossing too far into lies. I'll leave the messaging to you."
And just like that — he vanished, leaving nothing but the faint displacement of air behind.
The Minister scowled at the empty spot. "Is he allergic to walking?" he muttered, rubbing his temples. With a tired sigh, he looked up at the sky. "Great… now I'm stuck with the harder job: inventing a story the public will actually believe. Let's hope they buy it."
---
It was now noon in Japan, and thick clouds drifted over the sky above the academy on Okinawa Island. The sun was completely swallowed up, yet the clouds didn't carry the darkness or weight of rain — just a strange, heavy grayness settling over the campus.
Inside the dining hall, cadets lined up for lunch, collecting trays and settling into the rows of tables.
Kaile and Kasumi had just received their meals , rice, chicken, and lettuce , when Kaile glanced around. "Where should we sit?"
Kasumi scanned the hall and spotted a familiar trio. "There, Kiligaku, Toshiro, and Pathro."
The two girls headed over and took their seats. Kaile's eyes immediately widened at the monstrous bowls of rice in front of Pathro and Kiligaku.
"Geez, what is wrong with you two? Are you trying to feed a family of twelve?"
Pathro spoke through a mouthful of rice, exhausted but satisfied. "Eight hours of fighting will do that to you. I feel like I haven't eaten in years."
Kasumi raised an eyebrow at Kaile. "Why are you surprised? This isn't the first time. They always do this after training in the Magnus Realm."
Kiligaku groaned dramatically. "That place is torture. It's super hot, and the gravity is even worse than in the Icetomb. A true nightmare."
Kaile snorted. "Okay, I'd understand eating like this after eight straight hours in the Magnus Realm , eighty thousand degrees Celsius, five hundred times Earth's gravity, pure hell. But the Icetomb? No way. You two are just trying to have one last massive lunch before graduation."
Pathro shook his head. "If I'd trained in the Magnus Realm today, I'd be eating ten times more. That place is hell. Spend eight nonstop hours fighting in the Icetomb and you'll get it."
Kaile scoffed lightly. "I doubt it. And even if I wanted to, I can't. The final test is in six hours. Plus, didn't they announce all realms are off-limits to us finalists today? The only reason you two got in is because you went yesterday. No one's been allowed in since the morning."
Kiligaku raised an eyebrow. "Why would they even do that?"
Kasumi shrugged as if the answer were painfully obvious. "To make sure no one's off in another realm when the final test starts. Imagine missing the most important exam of your life because you were too busy getting roasted alive in the Magnus Realm."
As she said this, something clicked in her mind. Her expression shifted. "Wait… speaking of disasters — have you guys heard about the Tokyo incident?"
Pathro paused mid-bite. "Tokyo incident?"
Kaile leaned forward with a dramatic sigh. "Guess you haven't. Allow me to educate you two lovebirds." She cleared her throat like a professor about to lecture. "While you were freezing yourselves in the Icetomb, a Zunan appeared in Tokyo. It killed about five thousand people."
But halfway through, she noticed something… off.
Pathro and Kiligaku weren't shocked. Not panicked. Not confused.
They just slowly turned to each other… smirked… then looked right back at her, still smirking like two idiots sharing an inside joke.
Kaile continued, now slightly irritated, "—and then Vice Captain Taneki blew up the moon. The shockwave was blocked by the exosphere barrier, obviously."
She opened her eyes to look at them again… and there they were. Still smirking.
Her eye twitched. "Okay, what are you weirdos smirking at?"
Toshiro, who'd been silently eating this whole time, finally chimed in. "I already told them earlier. So I guess they're just enjoying your… very enthusiastic and dramatic retelling."
Kaile's face went red steam practically whistling out of her head like a boiling kettle. Kasumi hurried to hold her shoulders before she launched across the table.
Pathro chuckled, almost choking on rice. "You should've seen yourself! You explained it with so much passion."
"I'm going to kill you," Kaile snapped, ready to lunge.
Kasumi kept her anchored. "Hey—hey, stop fanning the flames, Pathro!"