The conference was held in a large hall enough for more than 3 thousand people.

  Sitting area was divided into three levels, the first to third floors. They were distributed according to the academy’s rank, with the higher ranked academies sitting on the third floor and the lowest on the first floor.

  Academy City pushed competition as it roused improvement. Hence, they rewarded those who were competent in what they did and punished those who couldn’t do anything. Carrot and stick, the board director loved such things to the point they went too far sometimes.

  I had experienced it myself so I knew better than these naive first year students who smiled like fools in heaven.

  “It’s always unpleasant to see the clear discrimination that all academies suffer like this. This is why I hate events like this.” I clicked my tongue as I peeked at the hall from the backstage.

  Darius, who knew what I went through last year, smiled wryly and closed the curtain.

  “You know they will realize that soon. There is never a quiet day in Academy City.” He said, “Besides, the ones gathering here are those who will be pushed to the spotlight. They should’ve experienced something similar outside, such as the Esper development program their family has.”

  “Poor guys.” I shook my head and headed inside, “By the way, what should I say in the speech? To be honest, I didn’t prepare anything.”

  “I knew you would say that, so I already prepared the material.” Darius snapped his finger, prompting another student from Godhaven academy to bring a paper to him. “Here, you can use this as reference.”

  “Wow, you prepared this?” I took the paper and looked at the content. A neatly arranged speech was written on it. Without a doubt, a lot of effort was put into making this. “You saved my ass, Darius.”

  “Don’t mention it. President was the one who told me to prepare it, saying that you would surely forget about it.” He answered while scratching his cheek.

  I smiled wryly upon hearing that. So it was Sibyl who told him to prepare it. She knew me too well to the point it was scary. What if she stabbed me with a flaming knife if I somehow messed up in the future? Just thinking that sent a shiver down my spine.

  “You will go up after Kireinas Academy’s Dean finished his speech as the headmaster representative. I will call you when it’s time.” Darius explained and went further inside, probably to continue his job as the staff.

  I waited backstage while reading the reference, trying to remember as much as possible to come out as natural.

  Even if I was unwilling, I had an image to uphold.

  After a while, I could hear the Dean’s speech was approaching the end. Applause echoed loudly, signaling the end of the speech.

  At the same time, Darius appeared and prompted me to go to the stage.

  “Ciel, prepare yourself. It’s almost your turn.”

  “Alright.” Standing up, I put the paper down.

  I took a deep breath and walked to the designated place, waiting for Darius’ signal to come to the stage. Somehow, this made me a bit nervous. Appearing and speaking in front of a crowd was different from fighting while being watched by thousands of people.

  Still, being nervous didn’t change anything. I failed to see why I should feel this way over a simple speech. In the end, they would probably either fall asleep while listening or just talk with friends.

  That’s why, I would just keep it short and simple. My job was to tell them to enjoy their school life and strive to improve their ability, that’s all.

  “It’s time.”

  I expected to meet Kireinas Academy’s Dean as I walked to the stage, but on the contrary to my expectation, the exit was through a different place, so I couldn’t meet him. I exhaled in relief. I was bad at dealing with her.

  Standing on the stage, I could see the vast hall lay in front of me. Hundreds of gazes landed on me as I stopped behind the podium. I swept over them and held the podium, furrowing my brows and appearing impassive to look serious.

  The silence was suffocating, knowing that I had to be the one to break it only added tension to myself. Man, can I just say a word and leave now?

  Maybe not, maybe two or three sentences, something I wanted to relay to these greenhorns.

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  “Hello, everyone. I think I don’t need to introduce myself, but it seems I have to, according to what the paper given to me said.” I started the speech rather casually and noticed some students laughed in the distance.

  Good, that was the reaction I was hoping for. Let’s continue it.

  “As you know, my name is Ciel Rune, a second year student from Rakuen Academy and a Vice-President of the Cypherion Student Council.”

  Nothing different contained in my speech compared to the others. Maybe what made it rather unique was the fact I spoke like a friend instead of being stiff and formal. When I glanced at Darius on the side, he gave me a little nod, which meant it was okay to continue like this.

  “... Competition will definitely be harsh, but that doesn’t mean you should hate your rivals. Other students aren’t your enemies, but friends. You will realize what I mean in the future, but to put it simply, enjoy your school life while it lasts. That’s it from me.”

  As soon as I finished speaking, applause broke down, louder than the previous one. Students stood up, clapping their hands vigorously. Why? I couldn’t understand where the excitement behind my speech was.

  I smiled wryly at them and turned around. It was time to leave.

  But just as I took a first step, my instinct refined through countless battles warned me that I had to put on my Psion defense as soon as possible. I didn’t fight my instinct and my halo radiated a bright glow on top of my head, and Psion covered my body like a blanket.

  And just a split second after that, the floor under me exploded, fire surged out like being spit by flamethrower, engulfing the stage entirely.

  “Noo!”

  “Kyaa!”

  “Run away!”

  Panicked voices echoed from the surrounding and hasty footsteps followed suit.

  “Ciel!” Darius shouted worriedly, but he didn’t need to worry.

  [Psion’s defense is damaged. Durability: 82%]

  My mental notification informed me that I was fine. Because of how hastily I put the defense, it became slightly fragile and had some imperfect spots, burning my uniform and skin. I groaned in pain, but I managed to hold on and activated my ability.

  [Daydream activated.]

  [Angel Wings activated.]

  Burst of light surged out from my wings as I infused Psion into it, flapping them rapidly to put out fire and chased away smoke. I managed to contain the fire and put them out before it burnt the hall.

  After a second, the smoke disappeared. I regained my vision and looked around, noticing all the students trying to run away in panic.

  Flapping my wings, I managed to gain a bit of height and raised my voice.

  “Calm down!”

  My voice drowned by panicked shouts. I glanced at Darius, and he immediately knew my intention.

  Bright, brown halo with a tribal design made its appearance behind his head. His Psion surged, channeling into his ability and strengthened its effect.

  “Everyone, calm down.”

  His voice rang in the rowdy hall. It was quieter than mine, but somehow I could hear it clearly as if he was right next to me.

  “There is no need to panic. Ciel contained the explosion and prevented the fire from spreading further. There is also no further danger with him being here, so stay calm!”

  Darius continued and the effect became apparent very clearly. The students stopped and looked at me, standing on top of a chair with my wings folded over to shield myself from their gazes.

  This was his ability, a form of wide-ranged Telepathy. Unlike what happened to me, these students should’ve heard Darius’ voice right inside their minds and had the urge to follow that word.

  The reason why Darius’ voice only rang near me and not inside my mind was because I shielded myself from such thing with my own ability, that which also acted as an automatic notification to report my actual condition.

  Having someone invading your mind wasn’t exactly the best idea in this city, after all.

  Now, after the crowd calmed down, I told them to follow Darius’ instructions with care. I noticed some students had a different act of conduct earlier and made a mental note of them. Maybe they were the three Advanced Psion that Darius mentioned earlier.

  I left the matter to Darius’ discretion and went backstage. This incident… I got involved in another trouble after all.

  I should’ve not come here. I sighed in regret as I deactivated my ability.

  The darkness backstage and the sight of running staff made me lament this situation more. My mind raced to connect everything that happened from the welcoming ceremony until now.

  Without a doubt, the explosion earlier was similar to the paper one. An Esper ability that caused an explosion by using an ordinary object.

  Why did I come to such a conclusion? Because I trusted Darius’ investigation. He wouldn’t miss an object as conspicuous as a bomb. There was storage under the stage, storing many normal things, and paper surely was one of them because it was used to note schedules.

  But it was strange, because the Twin Bomber who had the ability to turn paper into explosive materials was now under PMC’s care. Which meant, there was another Esper with a similar ability roaming out there, possibly the real culprit behind the opening ceremony’s explosion.

  Then there was also the strange mission from the board manager. I investigated using my own method, utilizing Coco’s ability to gain information directly from the victim. But the victim reacted strangely upon seeing my face, as if I were the one who killed him.

  And now this.

  I left the building quietly, trying not to alarm anyone. Sunlight seeping out between the dark clouds, hitting my face with its warmth and bringing me back to reality.

  What a day. Can it get any worse than this?

  The answer was yes. Because I was now certain.

  There is someone targeting me. And he’s working with the Cypherion’s dark side.

  In the end, I couldn’t escape from Cypherion’s darkness. The entry was free, but there was no exit. Now I clearly understood that I clearly underestimated the hidden meaning behind the words the Headmaster told me.

  “Man, I want to visit the maid cafe now.” I ruffled my hair and began walking.