The hell finally ended.
After several days of relentless, brutal, merciless thrashing—I was still alive.
Barely.
There were moments where my body had outright refused to move. Moments where every muscle cried out for mercy, where every bone protested my very existence.
And yet, I endured it all. Like a champ. Like the stupid, stubborn idiot I was.
But it worked.
Because today, I wasn't just a walking corpse with a pulse—I was standing tall on the morning of the Rose Academy Entrance Examination.
I rolled out of bed with a groan. My back cracked. My knees cracked. I was ninety percent sure even my soul cracked. But hey, compared to the agonizing death matches against Isolde, this was basically a spa day.
Beside me, the faint light of dawn filtered through the window, painting my room with warm hues.
It was the kind of morning that made you feel like the protagonist of a coming-of-age story. Too bad I was living a coming-of-rage story.
Mia would also be joining the academy today, though her path was a little different. While I had to prove my worth through physical combat and magic performance, she would be taking the academic route.
But that didn't mean she had it easier.
Not. At. All.
The academic exam of Rose Academy was brutal.
The average student never made it past 50. Even among the heroines—Amelia, Evelyn, and Celeste—the top scorers in the original eroge timeline, their results were 84, 83, and 82 out of 100 respectively.
That was the kind of difficulty we were talking about. The type that made grown men cry and prodigies sweat.
Still, I believed in Mia. Wholeheartedly.
Partly because she was brilliant.
And partly because I had full faith in the sadistic librarian-slash-torturer who trained her.
Isolde had been hellbent on turning Mia into a walking, talking, living, breathing encyclopedia.
And considering how she treated me like a stress-relief punching bag during my training, I could only imagine what she put poor Mia through.
But, again—I trusted her.
More accurately, I trusted her cruelty to be effective.
With a sigh, I shoved those drifting thoughts away and dragged myself into the bathroom.
I let the water run cold, letting it slap me back to full consciousness. After scrubbing away the lingering fatigue, I stepped out, dried myself, and walked over to the closet.
Inside was a pristine uniform.
Silver fabric with intricate golden embroidery. A golden rose etched proudly over the chest—emblem of the Academy.
The pants, thankfully, were black.
Small mercies.
I never liked uniforms. On Earth or here. They always felt restrictive, suffocating. A reminder that you were part of something bigger, and that meant pretending you were like everyone else.
Still, I understood the necessity of it. Especially here.
In Alaris, the divide between noble and commoner was vast. The arrogance of bloodlines ran deep, and many nobles were walking, talking embodiments of punchable entitlement.
Uniforms, at the very least, offered a semblance of balance. A visual reminder that within the walls of the Academy, your family name took a back seat to your own strength.
Even if most nobles ignored that part.
As I finished adjusting my collar and tying my boots, a sharp voice called out from the hallway.
"Son! Are you ready?"
Lucian.
His voice always carried that sarcastic bite, like he was half-amused by everything that ever happened.
I raised my voice in reply, "Yeah! Just give me a minute."
I quickly laced the boots tight and opened the door.
Right outside stood Lucian, arms crossed, head tilted, that signature smirk on his face.
"You sure took your sweet time," he said dryly. "What's the matter? You got a girl hidden in there or are you just a girl on the inside?"
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Ask your wife why she beat the ever-living shit out of me."
Lucian chuckled, clearly delighted at my suffering.
"Still salty about that, huh?"
"Salty? I'm practically marinated in trauma."
He clapped a hand on my back, his usual overfamiliar way of showing affection—or maybe amusement. Probably both.
"Don't worry," he said with a grin. "I won't save you."
I scoffed. "When did you ever save me?"
He tilted his head thoughtfully, eyes glinting with mischief. "That's the fun part—I didn't. And I won't."
Gods, this guy was infuriating.
I resisted the urge to punch him. Barely.
Still… despite all his sarcasm and twisted sense of humor, there was something grounding about Lucian.
Probably.
Hopefully.
Maybe.
I stared out toward the edge of the courtyard, where a portal would soon appear. A direct gateway to the greatest Academy in all of Alaris.
My journey—the real journey—was about to begin.
And I wasn't going in blind.
I had training, I had scars, I had motivation.
"My handsome boy is looking good today."
The voice that echoed behind me sent a shiver down my spine. A cold, instinctive reaction. My whole body stiffened like it had been dunked in ice water. Of course, it was her.
Isolde.
She stood at the edge of the courtyard, poised and graceful in her usual royal regalia—flowing gown, golden jewelry, and the kind of aura that said, I can ruin your day with a smile. She was back to her pristine, noble self. Thankfully.
If she had still been wearing those tight black leggings and that form-fitting training top, my PTSD might've fully kicked in.
But that didn't mean I was safe.
No, not at all.
'Fuck, my confidence really crumbles around her,' I thought, shaking my head internally.
She might be smiling now, but I knew what kind of monster hid behind that gentle face. The woman had turned training into a damn execution ritual.
Every session with her was a stroll through hell—one filled with blood, sweat, and the screams of my muscles giving up on life.
But I wasn't planning to stay the scared little chick forever.
No way in hell.
Just you wait, Isolde. One day, I'll return the favor. Not in the same twisted, sadistic way you did—but I'll stand tall. I'll defeat you.
Because at the end of the day… even if you were a demon in disguise, you were still the one who trained me.
The one who gave me the strength to walk forward.
"You really do look like a scared little chick in front of her," came a voice from my side.
I blinked and turned.
Mia.
I had, unintentionally, been ignoring her presence. My mind was too caught up in flashbacks of death matches and emotional trauma. But there she was, arms crossed, eyes full of amusement.
I scoffed. "Says the girl who cried on her first day of training."
Her face twitched. I smirked and kept going. "Let me remind you, the whole 'dummy practice' thing you did? That was just 1% of what I went through."
She clicked her tongue and tilted her head, clearly annoyed—but her eyes betrayed something else.
Worry. Concern.
That was Mia. Even when she was annoyed or playfully mocking me, she cared.
That was the reason why I couldn't help but hold her above everyone else.
She stood by me through everything. Even when I bullied her. Even when I went against her, against her ideals, against her logic—she stayed. She chose to stay.
I was her priority.
She never said it outright, but I saw it in the way she acted, in the way she looked at me, in the way she always had my back.
And yet… I used her loyalty to justify my actions.
Actions she would never approve of. Never agree with.
'I really am the worst,' I thought bitterly.
But I also knew—this was who I was. I couldn't pretend otherwise. Not even for her.
Lucian broke the silence with his usual annoying voice. "Alright, enough with the bickering, you two."
He stepped between us with that crooked grin of his. "It's time for both of you to start a new chapter of your lives. So—best of luck."
This time, his voice was calm. Genuine.
He looked… sincere. For once, like an actual parent and not a teasing older brother with godlike magic.
There was warmth in his gaze. Pride.
But of course, it lasted only a second before he added with a wicked grin, "And make sure to kick the asses of your competition. I want you two on top, looking down on the rest."
He started laughing like an old man reminiscing about his glory days—except he looked maybe six years older than me at best.
I glanced at Mia. She had a wry smile. Isolde stood by, cheering us on with that graceful, slightly scary energy of hers.
I couldn't help it—I facepalmed and laughed. "Of course I will."
Lucian's grin softened. He stepped forward and gave me a firm pat on the back. "That's the spirit. Oh, and don't worry about logistics. I've taken care of all the paperwork and documentation. You two are officially enrolled, so just go there and dominate."
Isolde coughed lightly, drawing our attention. "You'll find a shimmering portal right there," she said, gesturing elegantly to the middle of the courtyard. "Step through it, and it'll take you directly to the gates of Rose Academy."
I turned back toward them and, for once, lowered my head in a proper bow. "Thank you. For everything. For caring about us. For caring about Mia. I mean it."
Mia stepped beside me, her presence calm and warm.
She bowed like a proper noble. "He's right. We don't know how to repay you… but we'll never forget what you did."
Isolde smiled, and it was unlike any smile I'd seen from her before. Calm. Peaceful. A mother's smile.
"Don't worry about repayment," she said softly. "Cassius is our own child. And you, Mia, being his sister… you're our child too. Simple as that."
Lucian nodded, his voice mellow now. "Yeah. Caring for your children isn't something that needs to be rewarded. But if you really want to thank us… then stay strong. Stay sharp. Don't let anyone push you down. That's all we ask."
Mia's eyes glistened faintly. Without hesitation, she stepped forward and pulled both of them into a hug.
Lucian and Isolde embraced her back.
"Cassius!" she called gently, glancing at me over her shoulder.
I sighed—smiling in spite of myself—and joined the hug.
The four of us stood there in silence, just holding onto the moment. No words. Just warmth.
A minute passed. Maybe two.
Then we stepped back.
"Now," Isolde said softly, her tone laced with emotion, "it's time for you to go."
We nodded.
Together, Mia and I turned, walking toward the glowing portal that shimmered at the center of the courtyard.
Just before stepping through, I looked back one last time.
Lucian and Isolde waved, their expressions proud but… moist-eyed. They weren't crying, but their eyes told a different story.
I chuckled softly, feeling a strange warmth bloom in my chest.
Turning back to the portal, I stepped forward.
The world around me blurred, swirling in streaks of gold and silver.
And then, I was there.
Standing before the gates of Rose Academy.