Arsene stared at the sky above him—it looked astonishingly real. Perhaps it was real.
It was hard to believe that the place he currently stood was deep underground. It felt as though he was floating in the open sky. Was this some kind of technique? How could a sky exist beneath the earth?
This was a section of the academy reserved for third-year students. Arsene was heading toward a place called The Crater. The Crater would help him transfer to Sky Arena on the fifth floor of the academy to witness the battle that was about to take place there.
Architecturally, the floors resembled each other—only a few additional structures here and there, but no major differences.
Arsene soon reached a circular building with a glass dome. Guards stood at the entrance alongside several students and workers. This place was known as The Crater, a station that transported people between floors.
Without wasting time, Arsene stepped forward. All he wanted was to reach the battle quickly. He had already left a message in Erebus's office informing him that he was heading to the fifth floor to watch the fight.
Even though the rules were strict on this matter, Arsene didn't expect to be stopped—especially since he was already on the third floor, meaning he had long bypassed the restrictions of the first and second floors. Most likely, no one would check on him.
Upon entering The Crater, he saw large capsule-like structures. They weren't made of simple glass—rather, the glass appeared thick, glossy, and dense, as if it were a fusion of steel and all other metals instead of fragile glass.
He passed through the entrance to find several counters lined up along the sides—like a ticket lobby. You had to get your ticket before using The Crater.
Arsene didn't know which counter to approach, as none of them had clear labels indicating their use. So he chose the nearest counter with the shortest line—since The Crater building was currently packed with third-year students waiting their turn.
He noticed a wave of students entering one of the glass capsules. Oddly, it looked as though they passed right through the glass, as if it were gelatinous rather than solid. Once inside, they disappeared from sight.
Arsene pulled out his identification card and walked straight toward the counter, bypassing the line. Some students glanced at him with a look that said, What are you doing? You're cutting the line! But the silver card in his hand silenced them all.
He reached the counter attendant and handed over his silver card. The attendant, initially surprised and confused, quickly composed himself.
"Ah! No need, no need! You can go through directly!"
He pointed towards an empty capsule in the center of the hall. Arsene narrowed his gaze at the man, clearly not understanding. The attendant hurried out of his booth and escorted Arsene to the capsule, handing him a slip that resembled a ticket.
"I've already set it to the fifth floor. I forgot to ask, but you're heading to Sky Arena, right?" the attendant asked with a nervous smile.
He had configured the capsule without even asking Arsene where he wanted to go. Fortunately, Arsene's long stare made the man cautious—what if he'd set it to the wrong destination?
Even more fortunate was that he hadn't grabbed Arsene's ID card and verified his identity; otherwise, he likely wouldn't have let him pass.
At last, the card had proven useful.
Arsene stepped toward the capsule, unfazed by the curious stares of those around him, as if they were thinking, What on earth is he doing here!?
Unbothered, Arsene approached the capsule and entered. It felt as though he passed through something invisible, an odd sensation that tingled across his skin. It wasn't easy to describe—a feeling of something brushing through his entire body, touching his heart, stomach, and everything else.
The glass, seemingly solid from the outside, felt like nothing but air upon touch—you could simply walk through it.
Once inside, Arsene felt as if he was in the same place again. He could see a few windows, but far fewer than in the earlier Crater hub. There weren't many other people around either.
This Crater was located inside Sky Arena itself—a convenience reserved for Singularities of Grade 0.
Anyone else would have been transported to the main Crater building and forced to walk a long path to the arena.
But Arsene had been brought directly to Sky Arena—and, of course, without paying a single coin. The privileges were impressive.
He could see the workers and even a few other people and students—but they couldn't see him. Not until he exited the capsule.
He stepped out under their gazes. These weren't ordinary people—he could tell.
Such privileges saved time and effort—but required power to wield, because you'd be thrown into situations like this.
Arsene now stood before a giant of a man. Truly gigantic—easily over three meters tall.
"A new dark horse, eh? I can't see your magical rank… what trick did you use?" said the human giant.
His hair was long and spiked, his muscles bulging. He wore a pair of white training outfits similar to karate uniforms from Arsene's previous life—but the material looked stretchy.
Yes—stretchy.
Arsene didn't bother raising his head to meet the man's gaze. He simply replied indifferently,
"I have no business with you. I don't think we even know each other for you to stand in my way."
The man scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly.
"Ahaha, sorry, sorry. You're right—that's just how I am. It always gets me in trouble."
But the smile quickly vanished, replaced by a sharp, angry tone.
"Bitch! Did you really think that's what I was going to say!?"
He reached out and grabbed Arsene with both hands, lifting him into the air.
Arsene faced him up close, expression neutral, brushing a bit of the man's spit off his cheek. He looked into his eyes again.
"What's the meaning of this? Why the hostility? I don't even know you."
The man laughed and squeezed Arsene tighter as if trying to crush him.
"Aha, what's wrong? This isn't hostility—it's just a welcome! Don't tell me you thought I was one of those arrogant pricks who bully anyone new."
Arsene gave him a fake smile. For him, it meant nothing—just a smile.
But for the giant, it was as though time froze. He felt isolated from the real world, as if he was the first human alone on the face of the earth.
The primal fear of death—that's what that smile meant.
He loosened his grip on Arsene and dropped to his knees. Workers and other Singularities around them watched in confusion—what was happening?
Arsene stepped closer as the giant lifted his head, eyes pleading for mercy, a pitiful sight.
Some onlookers wanted to intervene since things were escalating dangerously just before the match—but for some reason, they couldn't move.
Because Jolovier was involved. They didn't want trouble—not out of fear but simply to avoid complications in their final year before graduation.
Jolovier—the giant—grasped Arsene weakly, as if trying to use him for support, but he couldn't. His brain wasn't responding, no neural signals reached his muscles.
His eyes told the whole story—the terrifying play unfolding in his mind.
Arsene leaned in close to Jolovier's ear and whispered coldly,
"Did you enjoy my welcome?"
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH—
A scream for help. A scream for survival. A scream Jolovier unleashed from the depths of his soul.
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Happy read fellas , Just wanna ask you something , Does the word Crater work better in this context.
Or I should change the naming of it.