Zero Fate Against the World (New Version)

Enjoy! 8K

It's like... 4:30 Am right now and I need some sleep.

I'll be away for a week on a vacation with my family so I wanted to get this out.

Peace!

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—

The higher he went, the faster he became.

"It's quite the view." 

Philip watched the city grow smaller and smaller as he reached the top of the wall. Thanks to that, he could perfectly see the city below him as it stretched into the near horizon.

If not for the darkness, maybe he would've been able to see the mountains given how high he currently was… 

"Hm?... I'm slowing down…"

'Did I arrive?'

Within a minute, Philip had reached the top. 

/Chuuf!.../

As if an old locomotive was releasing the spent steam within its furnace, Philip was ejected out of the glass elevator into a wide and unusual train station similar to those found in 20th century Britain, as if he had been thrown back in time. 

"This must be it." 

Along the long wall that stretched into the horizon was a tall building directly before him. 

Next to it, a long trench on the ground where a train stood in wait. 

/Chatter…/

Around it, many waited patiently for the train to depart, either conversing on the side, sitting on benches, sleeping with their heads low… It was no different from how people on earth would act.

Most were students in uniform with their maids and butlers behind them. The students alone composed 30% of the crowd.

/Shaa…/

While faint, Phillip could hear the echoes of the glass elevator behind him as someone flew upward.

At the same time, he saw a guard approach him, likely to tell him to step aside to avoid a rather embarrassing scenario. So before he was called out, he blended in with the people, resting his back against a metal collum as he waited for the train to depart.

"..."

'The technology of this world never stops surprising me. They clearly possess an advanced understanding of physics and mathematics, but I wager the reason they're not similar to everyone on Earth is due to the supernatural forces that govern this world.'

'One could say there's much more to that, but if Humans can be like this, so can any other species. And while I have yet to confirm how their civilizations look, I imagine they aren't that more advanced.'

'I think what changed the most back on Earth was the change of government due to the slow fall of hierarchical structures in favor of power being spread out.'

'Globalization, the fast advancement of technology, the overwhelming growth of the population, wars, and a lot more can be added to this equation, but it's hard to pinpoint why things went the way it did.'

'Some may say its simply correct to let the people decide for themselves, but its been proven time and time again that its hard for Human society to function if a leader isn't erected.'

'In the end, depending on how you see things, modern society isn't that different…'

'Either way, I did not expect there to be so many people here…'

Philip looked around, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the people around him:

[Lv ???]

[Lv 5]

[Lv 27]

[Lv 8]

[Lv 22]

[Lv 6]

[Lv 39]

[Lv 3]

[Lv ???]

[...]

"Hum..."

'The guards are just as high level as expected, but I'm surprised about the rest.'

'The average Level of the students seems to be between five and fifteen, and those values correspond to their age somewhat. While their servants are stronger, be them maids or bodyguards.'

'Hm… I thought it odd for them to be this low level, but it's not that strange now that I think about it.'

'Nobles are likely aware of the importance of maintaining one's potential and achieving more within what they're given.'

'They each likely have their own methods to achieve that, but if they're as much as slightly aware, they'd want their children to improve their Skills and Abilities rather than leveling up indiscriminately.'

'And while there will always be some that break the norm, one's strength cannot be merely measured by these values… Aren't I an example of that?'

'Although… A rather bad one…'

He raised his head to see a floating scroll displaying a series of times, and he immediately realized why there were so many students in there. 

'Looks like I was lucky… The train only departs twice a day, 8 Am and 8 Pm. No wonder there were so many people here. It seems these students couldn't get on the morning train…'

'There's still quite some time left as well, may as well take this time to rest a little.' He thought as he closed his eyes with a sigh

'Then again, aren't these kids quite late? I thought the academy opened a month ago… And even though classes only started recently, you had an entire month to arrive.'

'Quite daring to be this rude to the Academy. I heard they take themselves very seriously… If you ignore all of the blatant favoritism and shadowy actions occurring underneath the veil.'

'From what I read, the Academy could rival some small nations in pure military might. If you commit an issue, there won't be a second chance unless your background can hold themselves before it.'

He checked the time by looking at a massive, floating hourglass in the ceiling:

"... About half an hour left, I imagine."

'Perhaps more if we count the time it takes for the train to actually depart.'

Seeing how long he'd have to remain standing, Philip searched for a bench to sit down, walking to the edge of the station where he could see the other side of the wall.

In the extreme distance, he could see faint lights glistering on the horizon, that was the Academy in all its glory.

'I can't see it very well. How far away is it even? Ten-Twenty Kilometers?'

'The Academy doesn't stay at the center of the walls, so it's hard to pinpoint its location. Although it wouldn't matter much since the wall isn't perfectly round either.'

He then looked at the sky, but the moons in the sky were quite dim.

Since the sky was quite clear, all three moons could be seen, even if faintly.

'Now that I think about it, I haven't read much about the coast. I suppose the tides are quite ridiculous with three moons in the sky… That said, there isn't much study on them.'

'Space is just as much of an incognito to the people of this world as it is the ocean. Likely with reason…'

'I don't want to meet whatever lives down in their oceans, not when deep-sea gigantism is a thing…'

To pass the time, Philip checked the students around him, and he couldn't help but feel a slight tension in the air.

Some were better than others at hiding it, but Philip could tell everyone was silently checking each other.

"Sigh…"

'It must be a pain to be a Noble, huh? To study etiquette from a young age, to be forced to memorize a thousand household symbols, the names of their leaders and children, their appearances…'

'A life of constant tension.'

'Even more, being a noble girl… Look at these kids… Try to hide it a little better.'

'I suppose they're at that age. Some aren't even hiding their gazes… But some girls seem to like the attention… Hah…'

'It's the same everywhere.'

…

/Half an hour later…/

/CHUUUUUUU!/

The old-looking train released steam from its chimney, its engine flaring heat as it was brought to life!

It was time to embark. 

/Step step step…/

The station soon echoed with the sounds of people running around, and even what seemed to be… Conflict.

Choes took over the station.

"... Is it really necessary to cause so much trouble to embark when you are already late?" 

"Hm?"

His eyes were attracted towards a small boy who was suddenly kicked to the side. 

It wasn't an accident, he had been pushed aside by a group of kids the same age as him, they seemed to be about 15-16. 

This wasn't the first instance Philip had noticed such a thing. These Nobles were worse than Korean school bullies in media.

He saw a LOT in these past 30 minutes, and he can only grimace thinking about what those bullied kids would pass through once inside the academy. 

Looking at this kid, in particular, being bullied made Philip remember Petter… Well, they can't do much more than that since this place, by law, prohibits such acts…

'But I doubt they will stop for long…'

"Urg…"

And as expected, after being kicked aside and having some of his stuff taken, the kid whose glasses were now smashed on the ground got up with difficulty. An emotionless expression now on his face. 

"..."

'That's an interesting expression.'

The kid gathered the remaining things he had and embarked. 

"This way sir…" 

A clerk called to him as he took a deep breath, hoping for this chaos to end.

From his emotions, it wasn't his first time experiencing this madness.

Philip wondered why they let it be, but at the same time, it wasn't like the guards weren't trying…

In the end, this issue was entirely on the parents to resolve. 

"Good night Sir…" 

The clerk greeted him with a tired smile… Until his eyes fell on the badge on Philip's chest.

The moment he did so, his emotions immediately changed.

"... I am sorry to say this, but unfortunately, due to the high number of people, we don't have any more cabins available." 

He seemed calm, however, Philip could see his sneaky smile… 

/Snicker…/

Philip could also hear the laughs and snickers from some of the kids already inside the train. 

It made him greatly annoyed, however, he showed none of it. 

Internally, he rolled his eyes, but he did not show anything as he asked calmly:

"Can't I just stand?" 

'What a pathetic guy, I almost feel sorry for him. How bad must your life be so you need to resort to throwing dirt at others for your own entertainment?'

The truth was rather uneventful, all of this was just because of this man's pettiness. Then again, with such a tiring job, he needed somewhere to vent…

Philip, however, did not care, and if it wasn't for his mission, he might've punched this guy in the face. Alas, he held it in, unmoving.

"... If it's fine with you." The man replied as his attention fell on another group of kids

Finally, Philip rolled his eyes as he entered the train. 

…

"..."

After entering the train, he saw that it was relatively empty, most people were already inside the cabins.

He could hear their words, laughs, and yawns from beyond the wooden walls. 

In fact, he saw several open and empty cabins, but he knew that if he couldn't go towards them, else he may bring trouble to himself. 

He could very well enter and deal with these people later, but why bother? 

"Tsk. What a fucking display." 

'As if there are no more cabins, asshole. Playing around with me just because I'm a Warden…'

'And those kids laughing… They're probably the ones that ordered him to do this. Having fun tormenting the poor.'

'Sigh… I don't really mind standing for an hour, it's also simpler for me to listen to everyone from here, so there's a good side to this. But what I do hate is being played…'

'I will remember those kids' faces… I may be unable to do anything to do them in the open, but let's see how you'll act once I turn every single one of your dreams into a darned nightmare.'

In the end, Philip shook his head, clearing his head of those useless thoughts. No matter the result, it was just a bunch of Arrogant Noble kids who knew no better, mere weeds in the background of his adventure.

Their lives already hang in his and the other Heroes' actions, what greater mockery could there be then being unaware of your pathetic destiny?

What they did was nothing short of a small inconvenience, a prank to some… A very disgusting one…

/Close…/

Philip rested his back on the wall in between the windows, closing his eyes as he waited.

He focused his senses on the people around him, learning more about their world and perspective, just as he'd done before.

/CHUUUUU!/

And soon after he entered, the train departed. It slowly made its way across the tracks into the edge of the wall! 

/CRUNK!/

But when it seemed as if the train was about to fall… 

/CLANK!/

Under the echoes of heavy gears and machinery in motion, several sets of translucent wings opened on the sides of the trains like those of a flying fish! 

And like that, the train flew toward the lights on the horizon…

Into the Academy!

…

/Two hours later…/

/Chuuu!!/

After crossing several dozen kilometers of forests, the flying train finally started to lose speed. 

In the sky, two purple trails of fire ignited, leading directly onto a building in the location.

/Cling!/

With a loud metallic clash, the train landed on the rails, quickly making its way towards the ground. 

…

/Chuuu!!/

"..."

'Did we arrive?'

Philip slowly opened his eyes as looked through a window.

"Well, this looks just like what I expected."

It was quite like his expectations…

'Like a castle straight out of fantasy… Oh yeah.'

The Academy itself was built upon the remains of an old Dungeon at the center of a wide, likely unnatural, open plain, carved from within its husk like a monument on a mountain.

It was at least five hundred meters tall from the bottom to the top and built like a cone, the bottom section being the widest and the top the narrowest. 

However, it wasn't the sole building in the area as many were scattered as you moved looked around. Everywhere he looked, he could saw arenas and training grounds, and even other things such as greenhouses and smaller towers. 

Parad Academy was large enough to be its own city, and that was exactly what it was.

"... I imagine that is the Principal's tower." Philip muttered as he gazed at the academy's top

'That's my final goal. Usually, it'd be impossible for me to get there given the security in the area… But things are different now.'

'The tower's been sealed ever since the Principal disappeared, and while bypassing that will be an issue, there are multiple ways to get there.'

'Originally, people would continue to wait for the Principal's return. However, that never happened, and the tower remained sealed until its eventual destruction from the war for its inheritance years later.'

Philip looked around, and albeit thin, he could see other Dungeons piercing into the clouds…

'Hm… A Dungeon core will build a tower to reach the skies and transform…'

'Its husk, the Dungeon Tower, will slowly lose the power that supported it and slowly collapse over thousands of years.'

'Over the eras, as it slowly sediments, it will transform into a mineral unique to each Dungeon. The same material used to build this ridiculous wall.'

'The academy was built in a region where dozens of Dungeons once stood, and several still stand to this day, some still trying to reach "Heaven".'

'The reason why there's such a high density of Dungeons in this area eludes all, including Dae, but he theorized that something may exist underground, something that either stimulates their formation or aids in their growth… Maybe both.'

'If I had the time, I'd go after it, but if something like that does exist, then it'd be no less protected than the Principal's office. And while I plan to reach the former, I'd be alone for the latter…'

'One thing's for certain, and that's due to how many Dungeons grew and fell in this place, a lot of rare minerals are deposited under the academy. Some of which may prove useful to me… Something that many agree on.'

"And that's one of the reasons why… There is a lot of tension between the people."

'Even the professors from different nations and species will show hostility to each other from time to time… If I am not mistaken, there are even factions in this place.'

'If I had more time, interacting with them might've proven useful, but with the little time I have, I'll have to do everything on my own. All the while evading them.'

'I doubt they'd pay attention to a warden, but let's not give them a reason for it, shall we?'

/CATCHENG!/

/Tremble…/

The train trembled as its brakes slammed down, making several passengers trip. 

They all held on, for it was quite the abrupt stop.

"Here we are." 

/CHIIII!/

Steam was released with sparks as the train parked at its destination.

Philip was the first to move. As soon as the train stopped, he went to the door. 

/Chatter…/

/Tap tap tap…/

While he was aware of everything happening around him, he couldn't help but tap his foot on the ground as he waited for the door to open.

He wanted to escape this place as soon as possible before those infernal creatures decided to cause trouble. 

/Clack/

The door locks clicked as it opened, revealing a woman in formal clothing. 

Another train clerk, but not from this train.

"We hoped you had a comfortable trip!" 

"Yeah…"

'Comfortable, my ass!'

"Hm?..."

She noticed the badge on his chest, and her expression soured. 

A disdainful smile creeping on her face, she waved at, as if to shoo him away:

"Just follow the lights on the ground; yours is the blue one." 

"Okay."

'Damn, thot.'

He looked at the ground as faint whisps of light gathered, forming a path.

Without hesitation, he followed them towards the academy. 

…

/A few minutes later…/

The Academy was divided into sections, each with its own rules, duties, and security measures for those who frequent it. 

Like that, the surroundings of the Academy could be divided into five areas dedicated to the students from their first to fifth years. From their dormitories to classes and clubs.

It wasn't odd for a student to never step outside their year's exclusive ground, in fact, it was incentivized for them to remain with all being penalized for trespassing into another year's area unless given permission.

There were also areas dedicated to the teachers in charge of each year and the service areas ,typically in between the many sections of the academy, used mainly by the Jailors and Janitors so they could fix the magic systems that power and make everything work. 

As for the central tower, being the heart of the Academy, it was utilized by all and likely the only place where the different years met.

/Step step…/

Philip followed the lights towards the Warden dormitories inside the central tower… Passing through a tall metal gate as he crossed into another section deep within the maze of corridors.

However, as he stepped inside, he noticed something odd… Something he had noticed a minute or two before as he followed the lights.

"This must be it… But why does it look so… Rundown?" 

Broken walls, peeling paint, lacking decorations, and a gloom atmosphere.

To reach this place, he was basically shoved underground, far beyond the gaze of the prestigious students above.

;Sigh…'

'It seems the Wardens are suffering from severe mismanagement.'

Philip ignored the conditions and made his way towards the central office of this dormitory.

'This place is built like a damn prison…'

Rooms were assigned across a lengthy corridor, and its end was the supervisor's office.

Looking up, he saw that the corridor expanded vertically as there were also rooms above him, giving it an even stronger impression of this place being a prison.

Each room usually had several people living inside, so even this extremely minimalistic area housed thousands.

It was worse when you thought about the fact that half of these people would be replaced within a few months…

/Step…/

His steps echoed in the silent hall as no one uttered even a single wisp of a sound…

On the way, he saw many other wardens of the same rank as him. Most of them had dead looks in their eyes and injuries of varying degrees. He even saw one that didn't have a leg and a hand. 

Most of the time, they use dark cloaks as a way to hide their injuries and conditions from the students since that might make them more inclined to be targeted... 

Dae even told Philip that some students see, "Warden Hunting" as a sport... 

"A sad fate."

/Creak!/

Unceremoniously, he pushed the door at the end of the corridor, stepping into the office.

Inside, he saw a single table in the middle of an overly decorated, luxurious room.

Compared to the rest of the dormitory, this place was impeccable. Almost like a palace.

It was the only place that seemed fitting, given what he saw outside… 

All of the expensive furniture made Philip realize where all of the budget was going… It wasn't subtle in the slightest. Maybe that was the intention.

/Creak…/

Standing behind the table was an extremely fat man with a monocle as he attentively read a document, one of many in a seemingly never-ending pile of papers he kept stacking on the side.

As to be expected, he didn't seem to have any sort of injury on his body. This man likely did nothing aside from sitting all day long. 

[Lv 29]

"..."

'Considering you just need to be as capable as a 1st Circle magician to even apply, his level already surpassed the average of a 2nd Circle magician.'

'He may even be on the process of forming his 3rd Circle.'

Philip focused on the man, feeling his emotions and the lingering energies within him.

While his energy wasn't as bountiful as he originally estimated, his emotions… Weren't that far off his expectations…

'Is this one of those annoying situations?'

'Hm… Actually, I can make this work.'

"Hm? Oh! I guess it was time for a new batch to come in."

The fat man smiled, giggling faintly as the fat in his cheek trembled. 

Gentle words but laced with scorn…

While he smiled outside, Philip felt the immense disdain within the man. It was so great he felt impressed at his incredible display of patience.

"If it doesn't inconvenience you, may you close the door and sit on the chair?" 

"..."

He did as he was told, shaking his head before sitting down.

The moment he did so, he grimaced…

'This chair is so uncomfortable it's painful, my god…'

"Now… Mister Philip… Allow me to welcome you to Parad Academy." 

He opened his arms wide, trying to be friendly, but it took Philip quite a bit of patience to not laugh as his tits jiggled with his every move…

"Hm? May I inquire, how do you know my name?" 

"Oh! How rude of me. I imagine you still didn't have time to read the entire manual." 

"First things first, my name is Emanuel Decort. I'm a R-1 Executive Warden of the Academy." He said as he did a small, quick nod

"..."

Philip, however, scoffed at his proclamation… He had read the entire manual already, memorizing and internalizing its every detail.

'Bullshit, there is no such position… As if there would be someone who can show goodwill to a Warden while being one himself.'

'Wardens are self-sufficient, if you're a manager or something similar, then you aren't a Warden. At best, you're a higher-ranked Warden.'

'There's no such thing as "Executive"... That said, I think I understand what is going on.'

"Now, the reason why I know your name is because I can see your curriculum!" 

Emanuel pointed at a strange device similar to a keyboard on his table, taping it gently and proudly as he pulled it closer.

/Clack!/

He began typing, and soon enough, a floating screen appeared above the keyboard. 

"As you can see, I have access to all Warden's information within my authority." 

He scratched the back of his head, smiling lightly:

"Of course, it's mostly to monitor and gather information, I cannot alter this portfolio in any way…" 

"I understand sir."

'Bla bla bla, yeah yeah, you have my documents… How creative.'

'Trying to threaten me fattie?'

"That said, we're both busy men, and I am sure there are more outside waiting to talk with me, so let's get everything sorted." He added as he interacted with the keyboard

/Tap tap tap…/

"First, we need to arrange you a room, and after that, we need to assign you a job."

"This is only temporary, of course. But we do this in the hopes you can get the hang of how things work around here. After a few weeks, you will be able to act on your own, and my help won't be necessary anymore." 

"I can't manage everyone, and I prefer being left alone. So the quicker you get on with your work, the better it is for me."

That was the first time Philip felt honest emotions coming from this man…

"However… Recently, we've been quite full, so we had to resort to using old and unrepaired dormitories…"

"It may come as no surprise, but this isn't where the Wardens should live. This was an old sector meant to house 'unstable entities'... But repurposed into a temporary dormitory after the academy reorganized a century ago."

"It's now used in times of emergency like now. A shame it hasn't been properly maintained…"

Philip rolled his eyes internally.

"Plus, the students have been quite aggressive these past few years, so all of the good classrooms and jobs have already been taken…" He said with a tinge of regret as he adjusted his hair

"Would you be fine with taking on a slightly more dangerous job?" 

Emanuel smiled as he clasped his hands together. He made it seem as if it was a favor, but in truth, it was nothing short of an order.

He expected an adverse reaction from Philip. After all, most Wardens expected simple work at first. Few survived being sent straight into danger like this.

"I can't say I am but I think we can arrive at an easier solution Mr. Emanuel…" 

"That would be difficult but I am eager to hear your solution!"

He put some emphasis on the word "eager"...

/Chuckle…/

Philip laughed a little as he understood what was going on.

"Is something the matter, Mr. Philip?" 

But he did not reply. Instead, Philip sprung into action!

/BANG!/

In the blink of an eye, he got up from his chair and delivered a flying kick to Emanuel's face!

/CRASH!/

Emanuel didn't even react as he was sent flying off his chair – "GUAH!" He exclaimed as he crashed against a pile of furniture and the wall cracked under the impact. 

His forehead and nose were bleeding, he was clearly in shock, unable to process what had just happened.

Philip cracked his neck with a faint smile – "Phew, much better… I should've done this from the start."

'This isn't a nice place where people help each other.' 

Manuel reached to his face, pain flaring across his body as the crimson liquid flew through his fingers, as hot as lava. 

"Arg…" 

He took it out, watching his hand with a horrified gaze as he noticed just how much of it ran down his face… His nose was broken – that was his conclusion.

Pain, confusion, fear, and then… Anger.

He exclaimed with all his might as he pushed himself off the ground – "This… Why did you do this?!" 

"Fattie, don't play with me, it's too late to act as if you don't know." Philip said as he sat on Emanuel's chair, looking down at him as he crossed his legs

"Executive Warden? Don't make me laugh."

He pointed down at Emanuel's chest, saying with a mocking smile: 

"That fake badge doesn't mean shit."

'The badges are far more than just an identificator. Like he and the interviewer proved to me before, they're essentially terminals that connect to the Academy's "network".

'It took no time at all for me to find the Academy's rule books and manuals. They're accessible to all, regardless of rank. It's just a question of how much time their users have and their determination to read those thick things… '

'As for this fool… I doubt he's doing this by himself.'

'It seems there's an organization trying to pass itself as an official channel to scam and control the Wardens… For whatever reason…'

'How they did this in the first place is beyond me… But I can imagine this might have some ties with the fact the last dean has long stopped caring about the internal matters of the academy to focus on his studies.'

'Well, he was the kind of person to just abandon it and vanish, so it's no surprise this happened.'

"This little scheme of yours… I've seen loan sharks more honest then you."

"!!!"

Emanuel's expression changed. 

Philip smiled faintly as his eyes flashed with light – "You'll have to do better than that to manipulate me." He said as his gaze pierced into his body

He turned to the side, grabbing the keyboard and fidgeting with it…

"There was no mention of something like this in the manual. Where did you get it?"

"..."

As silent as a rock, Emanuel did not reply. 

"Humph…"

'Not being able to modify the contents of my curriculum? Don't make me laugh.'

'This is something that shouldn't be in this fatty's hands. It gives him away too much information, something only higher-ranking personnel of the academy should be able to access.'

'Well… I suppose they're all in on this.'

"Hey, fattie, do you know what happened to the managers? Why did they give you something like this?"

But like before, he said nothing.

/Clack…/

Emanuel just got up as he pushed the broken furniture aside, cleaning the blood on his nose and lips – "Hehe…" He laughed faintly as his gaze grew stern

"You attacked an executive, be sure to face the consequences." 

His smile deepened as he cracked his knuckles.

"I don't know who you are and why you are so aggressive towards me, but I'll ensure you won't have a nice time at this academy." 

'Fucker! I will show you what happens when you mess with the wrong people.'

Philip, however, barely acknowledged his bravado as he put the keyboard aside, getting off his chair.

Standing face to face with him, he replied:

"I should've expected this to be your reaction… Well, enough of this. I have other things to do."

/FWUSH!/

Philip suddenly vanished from Emanuel's sight. 

/SMACK!/

"!!!" – "GUAH!" 

Philip suddenly grasped his throat from amidst the fat, shoving his head against the wall.

"Now, since you won't answer my questions willfully, then I'll make you speak."

'I originally intended to come and go without leaving behind a single trace, but I was too greedy.'

'From the beginning, my actions were meant to be high profile, being a ghost is far beyond my ability. So I'll go with the second best option.'

'This is a risk, but it's the best of two poisons, I'm certain of that.'

'On one hand, I have these kids, nobles who would certainly make my life hell if I were to as much breath too loud in the presence.' 

'On the other hand, I have this nameless faction trying to mess with me. These actions may make them my enemy, but it's far more manageable than dealing with nobility.'

/Bzzz!!/

"Le…t…M- GO!" 

Emanuel tried to push him aside, but he was far too weak to even make Philip budge.

He tried to kick Philip, but he was like a steel wall, his attacks were ineffective, making him question his identity.

Fear creeping onto his body, he attempted to cast a spell only to fail as his energy scattered away… – 'T-This can't… He was supposed to b-be a 1st Circle at best!!'

Slowly suffocating, Emanuel slowly lost his ability to reason…

"The more you move, the longer this will get."

"S-Sto…"

"It won't hurt… Much." Philip said as he dropped Emanuel on the ground

/Ploft/

"HAAA!... Haa…" 

He took a deep breath of relief as he gasped for air…

But the moment he lifted his head… 

/CRACK!/

/Splurge!/

Philip's right index finger penetrated his forehead!! 

"Ahhh…"

But no blood came out. 

"Well then… I only have one shot at this."

"Either I succeed, or this guy gets dementia."

'I know the theory behind this, but I lack practice… And I don't have time to attempt this within Simulation Room…'

"You better root for me, fattie."

/Sheen…/

Purple light gathered on his right hand before it concentrated on his index finger and moved inside Emanuel's head. 

/… Pull…/

After a little while, Philip removed his finger. 

Blood ran down his forehead, but it wasn't too concerning.

"Hm… Did it work?"

Philip crossed his arms, observing Emanuel's every move…

/Tremble…/

Emanuel, who was previously moving, suddenly twitched and opened his eyes. 

With his eyes glowing in purple light, he got up from the ground. 

"What s 13 x 13?" 

"169."

"What is your name? What did you eat today at breakfast?" 

"Emanuel Decort Satyz. Today, I ate a toast with some Royal Northern Bee Honey and Goat Milk." 

"What's your biggest fear?"

"Starving on the streets."

"Good, it worked." 

'Forceful Mind Control… For a moment there I thought he was a goner.'

'To take control of someone's mind by directly taking the reigns of his mentalpower, preventing his conciousness from reaching his brain.'

'It's a very brutal process, often leading to the death of the affected. For it to work, I need a direct contact point between my mind and his, in this case, my own body.'

'I'm not skilled enough to make mental bridges that can allow me to control someone's mind yet… Or rather, I don't know how to do it.'

'I only had so much time with the Royal libraries and even then, I don't think they had everything necessary for the Heroes to take inspiration from until they mature.'

'They likely only had enough for them to sate their curiosity, overly complex subjects were left elsewhere I'm afraid.'

Philip pointed at Emanuel's forehead, asking: – "In any case… Do you have anything you can use to fix that?..."

"Yes." 

Emanuel turned around, walking to a large shield on the wall.

/Crank!/

Behind the shield was a hidden safe full of items, one of which was a simple bottle with a paste inside he applied on his forehead.

His wound began to heal… Slowly, but it was better than being bruised.

"Excellent. Now, tell me everything, starting from this little gadget…"

'I'd like to take it, but I'd be dammed to do it. They likely track these, and it would be an issue if he lost his.'

'It's best for me if he acts, forgetting we ever met and that I even exist.'

'I don't need it anyway since I can do everything I want from my badge. I just need to be left alone…'

'No privileges, no nothing, I just need these bastards to leave me be. And if they can do so… I'll leave them be too.'

Retribution? Vengeance? Please… Philip had better things to do with his time.

'Hm… That said… I also need a secluded room and a stable job…'

'I can accomplish my goal while leaving little traces behind, but with the time I've been given… I may be overstepping trying to choose my methods.'

'A little privilege won't hurt anybody…'

…

Time passed as he expected everything he wanted from Emanuel, using him to manipulate the Academy's records slightly.

"... I see it now."

'I… Misunderstood the situation… Kind of.'

'Emanuel is part of a non-official organization whose main purpose is self-profit of the one on top. Kind of like a pyramid scheme… No… That would be wrong.'

'It is official… In a sense.'

'Students can make groups just like Clubs back on Earth. Many students will make or join one to have a better Academy life, form connections, or procure resources in an easier way.'

'They are Nobles, they need to meet each other… That's one of the main reasons why some Big Nobles apply to the Academy when they could just learn at home.'

'I don't know who, but one of the students of this Academy made this group.'

'On the surface, is just like any other, but in reality, this group controls the Wardens… At least the ones between the first and third ranks.'

'And that's the extent of Emanuel's knowledge.'

"To maintain this, they'd need to be quite powerful..."

'As for what they gain in doing this? I can think of a few possibilities. But in any case, that is all unrelated to me now.'

'What matters is that I can easily move past this. Others might've dug a little more, but I only care about a few things. And right now, I can achieve them all.'

/Tap tap tap…/

Philip looked at Emanuel as he worked on his keyboard, saying: "Fattie, make sure that all documents are in place so no one suspects a thing." 

/Nod…/

'As long as my Mind control remains, I can have a peaceful time in this academy.'

'This grants me the opportunity to rise in Ranking fairly easily… At least to the next one… But that should be enough.'

'There's already an optimal work that fits my goals… It perfectly avoids the annoying kids, and it helps me attain my secondary goal of attaining knowledge.'

"Sir, it's currently 10:56 Pm. You need to check in on your new room before they do a System refresh at 11:59 Pm. Otherwise I won't be able to pin the room to you." 

"... Contact me once everything is done." 

'Considering the people Emanuel contacts on a daily basis, I doubt there would be anyone who is capable enough to notice what happened to him.'

'But just as an assurance, I've made him avoid the populated areas and stick to a closed-off routine – Wake up, prepare, come to work, go back, rinse and repeat.'

'Over time, this might attract suspicion, but I will only be here for two months at most… If needed, he will do some miscellaneous actions to reduce suspicion.'

'I'll be around to check on him either way.'

"Phew…"

'I don't know how long this will last, but I hope that by the time people realize he is being Mind-controlled, I will be out of this place.'

'Far… Far away…''

…

/A few minutes later, somewhere inside the main academy…/

Inside Warden's hallway, hidden behind a magical contraption, was an old, abandoned shaft… 

By using the specific code, Philip managed to enter this abandoned section of the Academy. A series of corridors unused in this era, existing only in the long walls of text and logs of the System.

Few knew of its existence, but even those who knew cared little for it. On that same note, whatever was on the other side of the hallway was of no interest to Philip. 

What mattered to him was something even fewer people knew… Within this already hidden hallway was another secret door leading to a large cavern…

A room, the place he'd be using as a home for the next few weeks.

"I like this place."

'To think a place like this was hidden in that shithole… To get here, I had to enter an abandoned room and activate a hidden switch, which led me to a hallway that led towards another section of the Academy.'

'But in this already hidden hallway, there is another hidden mechanism that you can trigger to get access to this house…'

'Being two floors high with a nice garden around it, no wonder Emanuel kept this place a secret. He wanted to sell this place to the right people and use the money to retire from this place…'

'He came to learn of this place during his years of study of the area… Or so he believes. The truth is that he was trying to perform illegal expansions of the area to increase his profits…'

'Perhaps he will get his opportunity once I leave the academy. But until then, this is the perfect hiding spot.'

"I only need to clean these vines, and it will be good to go."

'It was in pretty good condition thanks to Emanuel's hard work, but he was only one person with limited time, some plants still grew over some areas… Well, no big deal.'

'I'll clean it all in due time.'

"... My objective is to Rank up within the week." He said as he closed the door behind him

'In the meantime, I will research more about this academy and how things work around here, Emanuel will be perfect for that.'

'Once I gather enough information, I'll begin my operation. If I'm lucky, I won't even need to do that.'

"Hm… This place is quite dark, I guess the Magic Systems are outdated…"

"Emanuel told me this place was ancient and that he barely kept most of it functional. I can see that now."

"Let's see… I think it was around here…" 

His eyes brightened as he found a tall stone in the courtyard. 

He placed his badge in front of the stone tablet and… 

{Connection established}

A male robot voice came from the badge. After that, a large hologram appeared on the badge, showing a 3D blueprint of the house. 

This included its features and the areas that need repairs. 

"Hum… I don't need to repair those, as long as the Magic circuits are fine, I am okay."

With that, Philip entered the house… 

…

/Six Hours later…/

It was early morning; the sun had just peeked out of the walls that surrounded the academy.

Most students still slept in their rooms, while some professors opened their eyes, preparing for yet another day of work… 

But a shadow could already be seen in front of a large building… 

{Identity confirmed, verification complete}

Philip's badge hummed with life in a cold, robotic tone– {Welcome Warden 21-A78, opening Library N.6} 

/Shaaa…/

As the doors to the library opened, a cool, fresh breeze passed through his feet.

"The environment is quite nice." 

That s right, after reviewing all the jobs available, Philip decided to stick to the Library. 

Things like cleaning the shelves, mopping the ground, organizing the shelves… Although most of the jobs seemed mundane, they were mostly devoid of the presence of the students, which was quite ironic.

Even if there were any around, the Academy rules prohibited them from causing a mess inside, granting him some peace and relief.

Each job granted Philip a minuscule amount of credits, but little by little, he'd build the necessary to rank up, regardless of his expenses… After all, in this academy, all things revolved around credits. 

At least for the Wardens, they needed to buy their food, resources, and medicine with them. 

But Philip needed none of that, only some food at best.

"Forget one week, I might be able to make enough credits to rank up within two or three days." 

The shelves may looked organized from afar but they weren't, many books could be seen on big piles around the place and Philip could taste the dust in the air. 

"No wonder there were so many jobs for this place."

'This place is rather redundant since most students intending to better themselves academically would stick to the main library inside the main building.'

'This library is more of a relic than anything, or rather, a place for the kids to hand around.'

This library was located outside of the Academy in the forests that surrounded it, one of the reasons why Philip chose his place was due to its low popularity, given how far away it was from everything.

"The only problem for me is that the important books and higher-level stuff are kept in the main library, but it's not like I would be able to understand them anyway."

'Even if I could, as a Warden, my Rank dictates my access to such knowledge. So I wouldn't even caught a glance of them with my current one.'

'That isn't the case for the students.'

"Sigh… If I was 4-5 years younger, I might've been able to just apply to be a student…"

'Dae said I could try to pass as being younger then I am but I couldn't bring myself to do it.'

'But then again… Being a kid in this situation would be even worse…'

Without further ado, Philip cracked his neck and knuckles as he closed the library's doors behind him. 

"The faster I finish this, the more time I will have to read the books in this place and increase my Scholar Skill Level."

'Time to work!'

With a mop in hand, he went headfirst into the battlefield!

…

.

.

.

Notes

Here is a more in dept explanation for his scholar skill

(This is quite old so I'm not certain if I still follow it)

Scholar -> Only gives a Skill that allows you to see the Level of someone up to 5 Levels above you per Skill Level. Level 0 -> 5, Level 1 ->10

It also "Analyzes" a specific object based on Mc's knowledge.

So, let's say he sees a Mushroom in the forest.

If he did not read the Book. "Mushrooms of the North", the Skill would say:

[Colorful Mushroom

Probably poisonous.

It is growing below the shade of the trees with no problem and it has a faint grass aroma, the smell is irritating to the nose and eyes.

Upon breaking…

]

And more depending on how creative I am.

But let s say he read the Book, "Mushrooms of the North"...

[Blue Flag Mushroom

Extremely Poisonous.

A rare type of mushroom that grows on top of poisonous snakes.

It only fully blooms once they die.

It will release its spores once it reaches maturity, the amount and their characteristics are based on the potency of the venom of the snake it grows on top of.

Because of this, its life span is very short, but it can be increased indefinitely by pouring a diluted extract of the Snake s venom.

It can be used to make…

]

This Skill is OP because the Mc can perfectly memorize and store the information from the books he reads into his Mental Library, pretty much "cheating" the long and arduous process of reading and understanding a book.

This also allows the Mc to rapidly acquire information.

Although he still needs to re-read the book in order to fully absorb the information.

After all, the Skill may help him in identifying something, but it won t give him ideas as to how to utilize the information stored on his head.

For example, he may understand how hard a certain type of wood is and have perfect understanding of how to make a bow shaft, but the Skill won t give him a step by step method on how to do it, unless Philip himself stages a situation where the Skill can activate.

And that is only a possible scenario since that same mushroom can be used to make 200 types of medicine and products, but Philip only knows of 30.

That is after all, only a hypothetical scenario.

---

Again, this was written ages ago and I'm too tired to edit it now so I'll leave it here for the memories.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I wanted to add more interactions but I'm far too tired.

That said, I'm out!