Chapter 132 | Breaking Every Bad Ending

Lance remained expressionless as he continued to read off the next name.

As the names were called one by one, several students stepped out of the crowd.

This continued until Lance reached the second-to-last name on his list.

“Vanessa!”

“Here!”

Vanessa also joined this new rescue team.

“And the last one, Erylin Lorenz!”

“...”

“Erylin Lorenz!”

“I repeat, Erylin Lorenz!”

Seeing no response, everyone turned their gaze to Erylin. The students who had been standing in the academy's group tactfully parted, opening up a path.

Erylin was holding her hand to her chest with her head lowered, her brow slightly furrowed. She seemed to be spacing out, or perhaps struggling to suppress something.

Sensing the awkward atmosphere, the girl quickly snapped out of it and hurriedly raised her hand in a slight panic.

“H-here!”

Her clumsy display was honestly rather adorable.

At this sight, Lance folded his list.

Having finished calling all the names, he didn't linger, leaving only a single sentence behind.

“Imeve, I'll leave the rest to you.”

As he brushed past Imeve, Lance spoke in a barely audible whisper.

“Don't forget what you're supposed to do.”

At that moment, several other voices caught Ain's attention.

“You're here too?”

“It's you? What a coincidence.”

“Oh? You guys are all here?”

“Erylin, why don't you be the captain again this time?”

Ain frowned slightly.

It seemed that the students called out on the list were all Erylin's former teammates.

Wasn't that a bit too coincidental?

...

The plot was indeed starting to feel a bit off.

In the original game, the academy was indeed the underdog in this operation.

The other factions didn't want the academy to participate in the struggle for the compass.

Especially the chamber of commerce.

That was why the scene of the swordsman, Remy, maliciously provoking the academy occurred.

But the purpose of this plotline in the original game was more than just that.

This storyline had multiple branches. In the worst-case scenario, Erylin's squad would clash with the opposing side, leaving several students severely injured, which would plunge Erylin into deep regret.

Rather, the entire plot of Act Three revolved around Erylin constantly losing her companions, falling into regret and despair, and eventually activating the Ice of Aret within her body.

Act One and Act Two were the chapters that pushed Erylin forward.

Act Three was Erylin's growth arc.

As for the assignments of positions this time, the academy would be allocated to different locations depending on the branch.

But in the original game, this new team composed of different factions had never existed!

Ain pondered. He could only attribute this plot deviation to his failed attempt to play the victim.

Was this the butterfly effect?

But regardless, the final branch of this plotline would always converge on a single point.

That was Harrison, the boss of the Act Three interlude.

If this guy ended up in the same team as the academy, the outcome would be the deaths of most of the students and Erylin's breakdown.

If he wasn't in the same team, then after completely betraying the chamber of commerce and colluding with the church, he would cross paths with the academy's team on his way back with the compass and casually murder several students right in front of Erylin.

In short, Erylin was destined to break down over her companions being slaughtered by this boss, which would drive her to risk her life to obtain the holy spear and seek revenge.

“So we have to form teams this time...”

“Even if it's a mission, we're still being graded, aren't we?”

On the way to join the new team, many students were complaining.

“We're in pairs, and we have to collect mana crystal cores from the monsters we encounter along the way.”

“And then we'll be graded based on the number of cores we get. What a typical exam...”

“Did you bring any magical tools for hunting monsters?”

“No, I didn't even bring basic travel gear. Who knew we'd suddenly be assigned to a new team?”

“Should we ask the captain...?”

In the end, Lance had handed the management of the academy's students over to Imeve.

When those students turned their eyes to Imeve, they all froze.

“What is the captain doing?”

Imeve was currently pulling out all sorts of strange gadgets and stuffing them into Ain's arms.

“You'll get thirsty on the way, right? This is a magical tool I brought from home. It looks tiny, but it can actually hold a lot of water~”

“No thanks, that's clearly your personal water cup.”

“What about this? Assorted flavored cupcakes! They're very portable, and eating just one can sustain you for a whole day!”

“...”

“And this! A Tier 3 magical tool that can generate a small, specialized mana field. Aren't you taking an exam? With this, getting mana crystals will be a breeze~”

“Hmm... This one actually isn't bad.”

Ain had absolutely no idea why she was being so nice to him.

Looking at her delicate face, Ain suddenly remembered their engagement.

Seriously, what on earth was this girl's deal?

Naturally, the surrounding students were equally baffled.

They watched blankly as Imeve piled items into Ain's hands. Eventually, one of the students asked with a hint of expectation,

“Captain, where are our supplies?”

Imeve first turned her head in confusion, but then she let out a brilliant smile.

In her most charming manner, the girl delivered the most brutal response.

“Supplies? Shouldn't everyone bring their own?”

All the students froze in place.

They all understood the unspoken message: Ain and I are on the same side, and you guys aren't.

In an instant, numerous resentful glares fell upon Ain.

But just as they were looking at Ain like he was some kind of freak, another figure approached him.

The students had forgotten that there was someone else who had practically fought to the death for Ain just yesterday.

And that was Erylin.

“Uh, am I still dreaming...?”

“This guy isn't even on the academy's heartthrob ranking!”

“Where did this Ain guy even crawl out from?!”

“Heh, he's certainly on the Must-Kill List, though...”

The students gossiped as they walked, completely unable to hear the conversation between the three of them.

Ain stood in the middle, flanked by two girls.

One was Erylin, and the other was Imeve.

“Excuse me, are you the one engaged to Ain?”

Imeve gently pinched the corner of her dress, her gaze landing on Erylin.

Although the engagement was just for other matters and would eventually be called off, still...

After returning from delivering the invitations, Rosalind had specifically warned her that the Lorenz family, where Ain resided, seemed to be making moves as well.

Rosalind had said,

“Miss, if you're going to make a move, you'd better do it quickly~”

“The other party is a formidable rival~”

“I-I'm going there for official business this time!”

“My, my~ Miss, even if you aren't thinking about it now, if he gets stolen away by someone else in the future, it'll be too late for regrets, won't it?”