He opened the grimoire to the first page:

[ Name: Leomaris Runerth

Age: 18

Rank: Magician

Rank merit: Skill

Contracted entity: Mystery

Contractual cost: memory loss. ]

Second page:

[ Conceal: ... ]

Third page:

[ Null: ... ]

Fourth page:

[ Solve: ...

Solved skills:

Mercy of Death Sword Arts

Sixth Sense

Infinite Flow Martial Arts. ]

Leomaris stood in Rosay’s training room, bare-chested, sweat running down his skin and leaving it slick and pale. He shut the grimoire, it disappeared at once, and the white magic circle surfaced on the back of his hand.

’I think I’m getting pretty good at using Solve already...’

He muttered with a cocky smile. His classmates were having the Magic Phenomena class, he knew that, but the chance to master martial arts wasn’t something he could let pass. Not after Rosay had tricked him into an unfair deal. A few combat skills seemed only sensible, to boot.

True to his nature, he had altered the ancient technique Infinite Flow, a form of taijutsu, into something his own, Infinite Flow. A combination of Sixth Sense and Infinite Flow.

It granted him predictive instincts, and since the original Infinite Flow was built around adapting mid-battle, he was suited for virtually any combat.

His eyes moved across the sparse room. It reeked of sweat, had since the first day, but two days of treating martial arts like a puzzle had made him comfortable with that, among other things.

The martial arts book sat against the wall, borrowed from the library in Rosay’s name, naturally.

He walked over, pushed through his cracking back, and grabbed it.

"From this perspective, I think I’m glad we made the deal. At least I get to spend her money."

A soft smile played on his lips. He intended to keep the book far longer than he’d signed it out for. There was a sword art to master. His malicious thoughts were bleeding all over the place.

The last time he’d borrowed library books and forgotten to return them, he’d nearly gone broke — the fines had exceeded anything he’d thought possible. This time, though, the name in the register wasn’t his. He was in no rush at all.

"It’s not like a few pennies would be a problem for her. She’s filthy rich."

He headed out of the training room, sluggish, his body making its soreness known. At the entrance, to his right was Hazel. In her butler uniform, waiting.

"How have you been, young master?"

Leomaris patted her gently on the head, smiling. She’d returned from her mission a few hours ago, and he’d sent her away, claiming he needed the solitude to work through things. That was what he’d told her. In truth, he’d missed her more than he’d like to admit.

"I’ve been well, Hazel. How did the mission go? Did you confirm what I asked you to?"

Hazel moved immediately. She took the book from his hand and attended to his wet clothes without being asked.

"Would you like me to tell you now, young master? I’d suggest that you take a bath first."

Leomaris shrugged off the discomfort. He had no time to waste. After explaining to Rosay the organisation he wanted to infiltrate, she’d taken the initiative, contacted her networks and found a way in.

He’d been given three days to join, expected to bring valuable information, and had already wasted one. But with Raine here, he could act tonight.

"Don’t worry about that, Hazel. You can tell me on the way to my room."

She nodded positively.

"Just as you suspected, the Great Citadel has only one entrance and exit. It sits on the edge of a cliff that drops about fifty feet. Without flight or a summoner with a flying creature, an attack from that direction is impossible."

She paused, thinking it all through.

"You were right again, young master. Spiders were heading toward the citadel, and they came in various forms. If I am to judge correctly, the lord of the citadel is still a Lesser Lord, but possesses poison or acid attributes."

Leomaris had long since arrived in his room. By the door stood Hazel, waiting patiently.

"Are you sure you saw the lord?"

Hazel’s expression darkened. For a moment, the feeling of having failed the mission settled heavily on her.

"No, young master. I didn’t go into the citadel to verify that. So you want me to check it now?"

A soft smile curved on Leomaris’s lips.

"You’ve done well, Hazel. Also, find my big sister and tell her I asked you to come over."

Hazel nodded and excused herself. Leomaris headed for the washroom, his mind already on everything she’d said.

In the novel, the Great Citadel raid was a failure.

When the cadets arrived, no lord was waiting, only a man who had not only lost his mind consuming the solution for his evolution but had been entirely consumed by the citadel’s malevolent energy. He was a black mage. And the lord of the citadel.

This man would wipe out nearly half the first-year cadets.

Bringing him down took Raine, the heroine, undergoing a full character arc by abandoning her fears and fighting alongside Lucius and Charlotte.

Even then, it was only possible because he was early in his black mage evolution. Just a Berserker.

’But this man was named Einstein. He belonged to the Crimson Order, and during a mission, he discovered that what the Order needed from him was the final piece required to complete his solution and become an Archmage. But his blood synchronization was too premature... and he lost his mind.’

This was what he had to sell. The man within the citadel was in the first stage of black mage evolution, the Mindless stage. At this point, he was practically harmless.

’The items Einstein obtained from the mission are very important to the Crimson Order. In fact, they could destroy it if not secured. However, as a pacifist, I do not believe my information should be given for free. As payment, I would like to join the Crimson Order.’

It couldn’t be clearer. He could have given the information to his fellow cadets, headed to the citadel, and finished Einstein before he reached the Berserker stage. Before he could wipe out nearly half the class.

But his head was on the line, and he chose accordingly.

The Crimson Order would most likely deal with the black mage themselves, which meant the cadets, when the time came, would search the mountains and find nothing. Return without casualties. And with a position in the Crimson Order secured, his father wouldn’t have him killed.

The easiest way to gain a reputation without walking before death.

—

21 : 58

21 : 59

22 : 00

The moment the clock struck ten in the evening, Leomaris, seated gently upon his bed, retrieved a black ring etched with faint, glowing runes. He slipped it onto the index finger of his left hand.

In an instant, everything went dark.

Then, without warning, red ghostly lights began to bloom in the distance, one after another. And before he could even draw breath, he was there, seated behind a long, stretching table, swallowed in absolute blackness.

The only things visible were the table itself and the figures seated around it. Their bodies were shrouded in the same crimson mist that cloaked his own.

His gaze flicked sharply from face to face. He could make out men and women, hints of clothing, and strands of hair, but never their features. No matter how hard he focused, they remained blank.

Then it hit him.

He’d fucked up.

"How did he know the identity of Einstein?" The question that would be on everyone’s minds.

His body went rigid. A tremor crawled up his spine as panic coiled tight in his chest. He wanted to rip the ring off immediately.

But as though something had noticed him, as though the thought itself had been heard, a deeper crimson light ignited at the far end of the table.

"Order!"