Kaiser was surprised by how easy it was to take out the masked guy.

Simply exposing the fact that he knew about them was enough to make his brain go blank.

’Truly, humans are bizarre creatures.’

[You have slain a Rank 1 Evolved Human, Patr Vladimir]

Hearing the voice of the system, Kaiser confirmed that the man resting on Cursed Knight’s sword was dead.

The lady removed her sword from his heart, letting his corpse fall to the ground.

’I have never tested a theory that has been at the back of my mind. Perhaps I should do that sometime later.’

His fingers twitched slightly, and the surveillance cameras that caught him in their view instantly went out, covered by solid shadows.

After confirming that no one could spy on him, Kaiser looked at the corpse that was growing cold.

"Consume."

His shadow surged with excitement, like a kid presented with dessert.

Patr was instantly swallowed, completely transformed into a Shadow under Kaiser’s command.

With the scene cleaned up, Kaiser turned and looked at Cursed Knight.

Her face was beyond the helmet, just a few meters from him.

He raised his hand, intending to push her visor up.

However, his hand halted midway, then dropped. His heart felt heavy, and he realized he wasn’t prepared to face her at all.

’How strange... someone I barely spent a few days with... yet makes me feel conflicted. Truly baffling.’

Well, considering the fact that he had only ever seen his father’s picture, yet he was so obsessed with him. Perhaps his conflicting emotions regarding Kara wasn’t strange at all.

Exhaling through his nose, he dismissed her, allowing her to return to the peaceful embrace of his shadow.

In his pocket, he felt his phone vibrate.

Checking it, he realized it was a message from Liam to the class group chat, checking if everyone was alright.

’That guy is really a mother hen.’

Chuckling, Kaiser pocketed the phone, then resumed his journey to the dormitory.

Unsurprisingly, there was a bit of controlled chaos in the dormitory.

Although the students had suddenly regained their connection to their abilities, none of them acted like deranged prisoners breaking out of a cell.

This was an Academy with several Evolved Instructors. Anyone who did anything unnecessary would definitely be crushed like a fly.

Therefore, the students merely checked their status interface and showed off their elemental affinities to one another.

Kaiser ignored them all, arriving at his room quietly.

Kiera was standing by his door, arms crossed and a shadow of worry cast over her face.

The instant she saw him, her face lit up, and she grabbed his clothes.

"Kaiser! Thank goodness, I’ve been worried you got killed."

He gave her a look of surprise. "Killed? Me? By who?"

The silver-haired girl scoffed and said. "That arrogant tone of yours again. Forget it. Just open the door."

Shrugging, Kaiser unlocked the door and entered. Kiera followed behind him, her steps light.

After closing the door, Kaiser took off his jacket, sat on the bed, and removed his shoes.

"So... why have you come to me?"

He still didn’t know why Kiera had appeared at his doorstep, though he had a guess in mind already.

"Of course I had to come!"

The girl huffed, an annoyed expression on her face.

"The limiters suddenly got deactivated! Everyone has gotten access to their abilities. I can’t believe it! But I really had to run."

Kaiser tilted his head, "Why?"

Shooting him a mild glare, Kiera’s voice rose.

"What if there’s someone with a bizarre ability that can confirm that I’m not human? I’ll be screwed. The next thing I’ll know is probably being killed by Instructor Rina."

Kaiser nodded. That was his guess, and it was pretty reasonable. However, he doubted there would be any ability that could tell easily if she wasn’t a human. Bloodlings had originated from humans after all.

’She should know this too. So she merely came to me, for... reassurance?’

Pushing his shoes beneath the bed, Kaiser looked at her.

"You think you’ll get discovered that easily? How do you think your parents mingled with the human society?"

He didn’t know of her history, so he was surprised when her face fell.

"My parents... yeah, they mingled well."

Her voice was tinged with sorrow and guilt as she spoke.

Leaning back, Kaiser nodded.

"Good. That means you can do the same. And if your existence gets exposed, notify me."

Kiera’s previously dull expression warped in shock.

"You’ll come save me?!"

Kaiser rolled his eyes, falling onto the bed.

"Save you? Only if you continue being useful. Just think of it as not wanting to replace a pawn."

"How mean~" She stuck out her tongue, then smiled. "Thanks for the help, though. I’ll appreciate it."

Kaiser nodded flatly, expecting her to take her leave. He closed his eyes gently..

’Hm?’

He felt her climb onto him, straddling him carefully.

Opening his eyes, he found her face hovering inches from his nose.

In her red eyes were conflicted emotions, swirling like a beautiful view of the stars.

"I know this is wrong but..." She bit her lip, "Ever since that kiss, I’ve been craving more. I’m sorry."

Kaiser sighed, then gave a faint nod. He didn’t refuse.

Kiera lowered her head, then kissed him.

.........

Meanwhile, all over the campus, several students had been attacked around the same time Ariel and the others were attacked.

Some were injured, but after their limiters got deactivated, they immediately turned the situation around and eliminated the Awakened Beasts.

News spread quickly, and everyone on campus realized someone was planning against the academy and threatening the lives of the students.

What they didn’t know was that the mastermind was already dead. At least, the Bishop of the big game had been removed by an anomaly, alerting the real players.

The next day, the chubby man who had been caught by Anthony was executed, and a news was released to the students about the ’still-deactivated’ limiters. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

It was going to remain permanently deactivated, though the students still had to wear it around. Also, along with this joyous news came a set of rules that made some students shiver.