Ch.2626. A Flawed Crack

A special magical tool provided within the Academy.

This magical tool, shaped like a small tablet, had a function that allowed sending messages.

While it also had features for viewing news and announcements within the Academy, students called it a “messenger” because of these communication capabilities.

Unfortunately, this messenger could only be used within the Academy.

The circuit that transmitted the magical tool’s signal was only installed inside the Academy.

Well, it wasn’t really a limitation that mattered to Academy students who rarely had any reason to leave this place.

However, the Academy didn’t provide this nice messenger for free.

Actually, they did provide it, but with some discrimination.

The advanced class had unlimited transmissions, but the intermediate class was limited to 150 messages per day, and the lower class was restricted to 300 messages per week, not even per day.

Of course, if you only used it when necessary, there wouldn’t be any shortage.

But would kids this age use such a feature only for official purposes? Maybe not all, but most would use it for private conversations.

Especially Celia. She was so excessive that I felt fortunate she had no limits.

[Celia: Ludion. Are you sleeping?]

[Celia: I just went to Lilith’s room.]

[Celia: I was absolutely shocked.]

[Celia: You should have seen how messy her room was.]

[Celia: Is your room well-organized?]

[Celia: I’d like to see it sometime if I get the chance.]

I don’t know why she has so much to say. Her daily routine includes bombarding me with messages before bed.

My room is well-organized, but I can’t show it because the wall is broken.

Wait, why would you even try to enter the boys’ dormitory? That’s against school rules, you know.

While this messenger was excellent for conversations… I didn’t have anyone to send messages to or receive messages from except Celia, so it was basically sealed away.

I carried it around just in case, but I kept it buried with all alerts turned off.

-Beep!

So when it rang during a lecture, I wondered what was happening.

Thanks to that, I drew everyone’s attention in the middle of the lecture. Both Reina, who was conducting the lecture, and the students who were listening, all had their eyes focused on me.

I took it out discreetly to check, and there was a message from Alkine.

[Alkine: If you see this message, please come to the Student Council immediately. It’s a new Rift.]

Judging by the lack of specific addressee, it seemed to have been sent to all Student Council members.

The unusual alert sound suggested it was sent as an emergency message.

It was like a disaster text that only authorized people could use.

Celia, who was sitting next to me, glanced at my messenger and spoke.

“You should go right away.”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm.”

Then she glanced at her own bag… but unfortunately, her messenger remained silent.

That makes sense. Alkine wouldn’t involve a new student in Rift exploration.

I’m just an extremely unusual case.

“I need to work hard so I can follow along soon too.”

Though she tried to hide it, she looked quite dejected.

But she doesn’t need to feel that way. Celia’s current level is sufficient to join.

I saw her using magic when she was demonstrating during Lilith’s training, and it was definitely beyond what should be possible at this point.

If Alkine had seen her skills, she would have seriously asked her to join too.

Based on the original story, she’s around mid-second year level? At that point in the original, Celia had already secured the top position, so while she couldn’t solo everything, she was definitely strong enough to be part of the exploration team.

I should put in a good word for her next time. She looks really disappointed about not receiving a message.

Anyway, since I was called, I needed to go quickly.

Forget the lecture. I don’t really need to know about “Understanding Mana” that we’re currently learning, and Student Council activities take priority anyway.

You might wonder why, but it’s because the Academy would be in trouble if the Rifts aren’t handled properly.

“Professor. The Student Council called for me, so I need to go.”

“Go ahead.”

When I explained the situation to Professor Reina, she easily granted permission.

“Take care.”

“Yeah. Study hard.”

“…Don’t treat me like a child.”

And to Celia, who still looked a bit down… I just threw my usual joke.

“Already being called by the Student Council?”

“I knew he was different, but I didn’t realize he was already at a level to be part of their fighting force…”

“There’s really a huge gap…”

People around were murmuring something, but I couldn’t hear clearly and didn’t think I needed to know, so I ignored it.

As soon as I left the classroom, I headed straight for the Student Council.

Although I was called with an emergency message, it didn’t seem that urgent, so I didn’t run frantically like before.

When I arrived and entered… I felt some unfriendly gazes.

It seemed the news about me receiving an official position had already spread.

Despite such reactions, Alkine… pretended not to notice and just welcomed me shamelessly.

“You’re here. Sit over here.”

She even reserved a seat for me in advance. Right next to herself.

Please stop doing that, President. Every time you do, the Vice President looks at me like he wants to kill me.

After I sat down, we waited a bit longer until all Student Council members except Celia had gathered.

Once Alkine confirmed everyone had arrived, she immediately stood up.

“Good. Now that everyone’s here, let’s depart.”

There was no explanation. The Student Council’s job was always the same when a Rift opened.

Especially on the first day, the main purpose was just to scout the entrance of the Rift and gather information, so there was no need for elaborate preparations.

“Why is another one opening after just a week?”

“Is it going to be another weird Rift like last time?”

“Hey, don’t even joke about that.”

“I was the one who got hurt, so why are you making such a fuss?”

Some were having such light conversations, showing how casual the atmosphere was.

But was that casual conversation a flag?

On the way to the Rift, Grain’s expression suddenly hardened.

“President. Something seems wrong.”

She even said it out loud.

The previously light atmosphere sank a bit, and everyone headed toward the Rift with faster steps than before… but as soon as they arrived at the Rift, everyone couldn’t help but freeze.

There, a Rift completely different from what they knew was spread out before their eyes.

Crack-crack-crack-

The Rift, which should have been calmly staying in place… was writhing violently and making sounds as if it would burst at any moment.

Moreover, the red aura that should be emitting from the core of the Rift was pouring out from the Rift itself.

Although this seemed visible only to me, combining all this information, there was no need to consider other possibilities.

This was a sign of a Rift going berserk.

I urgently asked Alkine.

“President. Do you know how long it’s been since that Rift appeared?”

“About an hour now.”

“This is crazy.”

Normally, a Rift goes berserk when it’s left unattended for too long. The energy inside isn’t processed and swells up, eventually bursting and spilling out.

But that usually takes at least a month. An hour is nowhere near enough time…

Could this also be due to the difficulty level? Like, “At this difficulty, Rifts on the verge of going berserk are naturally generated.” Something like that?

It was pointless to worry about it. Even if I knew the truth, it wouldn’t stop the Rift in front of us from going berserk.

First, I needed to assess the situation, so I glanced around and saw that everyone was just on guard, not knowing what to do.

It couldn’t be helped. In reality, this world has a fairly well-established system, so there are virtually no cases of Rift outbursts near inhabited areas.

Therefore, unless you’re a veteran who has been through everything, knowledge about this is quite limited.

Especially for the Student Council, who deals with Rifts as soon as they appear, this would be even more unfamiliar.

They might have learned about it theoretically, but theory and practice are different.

I even asked Alkine just in case, but even she could only shake her head.

“I apologize. I’ve heard such cases are common in my homeland, but I’ve never experienced it directly.”

“Well, I figured as much.”

No matter how often Rifts appear in the North, she was still a young child when she was there.

It would be strange to expect northern experience from someone whose first Rift experience was with the Student Council.

If Alkine was at this level, I didn’t think anyone else would know better.

Ah, really. I was planning to just quietly earn contribution points this time, but that’s all ruined now.

I approached Alkine, who was racking her brain on how to resolve the current situation, and made a suggestion.

“President. We have two options.”

“What are they?”

“One is for you and me to go inside and process the core as quickly as possible.”

“And the other?”

“Just let it burst, and when chaos ensues, request help from the Academy.”

Entering now doesn’t guarantee success, but it’s better than doing nothing.

If we fail, we can naturally move to the second option.

Of course, if the gate goes berserk while we’re inside, we might get ejected along with the monsters and be surrounded… but even then, I can just dodge and run away, and Alkine can slice through everything with a few swings, so it shouldn’t be dangerous.

…Why am I going in? Well, I need to fill my contribution points.

Hearing my words, Alkine naturally chose the former.

But after making the choice, something seemed to bother her, and she asked me a question.

“Is there a need for just the two of us to go? If we need to find and process the core, wouldn’t it be more efficient for all of us to go in…?”

“You want everyone to go into that unstable place? Do you know what could happen?”

If we all went in and failed the mission, we’d be scattered and ejected outside. Along with the monsters inside.

Then everyone would have to escape on their own… and honestly, I was worried.

Not because they’re weak. How could I, with much lower stats, dismiss the Student Council’s strength?

It’s just that the creatures coming out of the Rift are so unpredictable that I can’t help but worry.

Without overwhelming force like Alkine’s, who knows what could happen.

There’s already a precedent, isn’t there? The previous Rift distortion incident.

Of course, that was a mess because of the demons… but the transformed monsters at that time would have been too much for individuals to handle.

Alkine knew this too, so she couldn’t refute my words.

“I feel somewhat sorry for relying on you despite being the Student Council President… but I have no choice but to follow your advice right now.”

“What’s there to be sorry about? If one doesn’t know, we just help each other out.”

“Thank you for saying that.”

So it was decided that Alkine and I would tackle the Rift separately, while the rest of the members would stand guard nearby and respond if the Rift went berserk.

“President! Why are you taking that guy with you? You should take me instead…!”

When this was announced to everyone, there was one person who gritted his teeth and opposed it, but it wasn’t enough to change the already made decision.

Honestly, in terms of combat power, it might be better to take the Vice President… but well, even with lower specs, an experienced player is better in these unexpected situations.

Alkine is also secretly tired of Diggers’ obsession, so she would never choose to go with him instead of me.

The other members also looked at me with questioning gazes, but thanks to the President giving me an official position, they seemed to think there must be a reason.

“Why… why with someone like him…”

Leaving behind Diggers, who kept grumbling, Alkine and I stepped into the Rift that looked like it could burst at any moment.