Thanks to the gamified stamina system, no matter how much I ran, I didn’t get tired.
Yet, why was I still gasping for breath?
“Huff, huff.”
I arrived at the student council building. From within, I had the odd feeling that a menacing aura was emanating.
As I cautiously approached and opened the door, I was greeted by Alkine, who was sitting alone inside, smiling warmly.
“Oh, you’ve finally arrived. You sure made me wait for quite a while.”
She was smiling, but why did it feel so cold?
‘Why else? It’s because I made her wait for so long.’
I had no choice but to apologize profusely, lowering myself as much as I could.
“I’m sorry.”
“Well, I was the one who suddenly called you here, so I can’t really blame you.”
“No, even though I just enrolled today, I’m already a member of the student council with a badge. I should have responded promptly to the summons.”
“Hmm.”
Her mood seemed to lighten somewhat at my remorseful attitude. The oppressive aura emanating from Alkine noticeably dissipated.
Alkine, who was already among the strongest, had likely grown even more powerful due to the changes in difficulty. It would do me no good to provoke her any further.
“Well… fine. I’ll admit that it was also my fault for not explaining the circumstances before calling you over.”
“Thank you…”
“Enough. This groveling doesn’t suit you at all. Get back to your usual self immediately.”
‘If you say so, then so be it.’ I immediately snapped out of apology mode.
“If it was urgent, you should’ve told me it was urgent. So, why did you call me here all of a sudden?”
“…Was all that attitude from before just an act?”
Her expression soured as she frowned and glared at me, seemingly displeased by my sudden change in demeanor. She was difficult to deal with… What rhythm was I supposed to match?
“Sigh, forget it. This isn’t the time for that.”
Saying this, Alkine stood up and walked out of the student council building.
“Follow me. I’ll explain on the way.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I trailed behind her, heading towards the back of the student council building. Soon, we arrived at the open field where I had sparred with Grain earlier. Alkine crossed the field and led me deeper into the woods.
The path was hardly a path—just gaps between trees.
Normally, one would have no idea where it led, but I knew exactly where it was going.
“There’s been a recent rift that we’ve been handling. We were supposed to finish the final clean-up today.”
A rift managed and handled by the student council.
And if we were heading there…
“You were quite late, considering I intended to bring you along.”
That could only mean one thing.
“Why are you taking me there?”
I couldn’t understand, so I asked outright.
Handling a rift was far more dangerous than simply hunting monsters.
Even the current student council, with its extraordinary lineup, struggled with rift management. Alkine surely understood this.
Even Seria, brimming with talent, wasn’t allowed to participate in rift management during her first year because of her inexperience. Her name only appeared in rift management reports after she became a second-year student.
So why was she suddenly bringing me along?
I was baffled, but my questions were quickly answered by Alkine.
“The vice president said it would be good for you to experience something that could humble your arrogance.”
‘That lunatic…’
But knowing his personality, it wasn’t surprising.
If it was Diggers Jibchack, the vice president who couldn’t stand any male receiving Alkine’s attention, it made sense. I’d already anticipated he might pull something.
Allow me to introduce him—Student Council Vice President, Diggers Jibchack.
Nicknamed… “Diggers the Obsessive Psycho.”
He’s hopelessly in love with the student council president and desperate to possess her.
Rest assured, if the president was weaker than him, she’d be in danger. But Alkine was the “strongest” among the students.
She possessed such overwhelming power that even chūnibyō-like descriptors didn’t feel out of place.
Alkine had only kept him as vice president because she recognized his abilities. She was fully aware of his unseemly obsession.
Naturally, she must’ve seen through his intentions with this proposal as well.
“You know he’s lying, don’t you?”
“I do. But I think it’ll be fine.”
“What exactly is fine about this?”
Had she casually accepted his proposal just because I was a freshman? It was unbelievable.
This woman. Could it be that she’s not just overestimating me, but actually thinking of me as something far greater?
Of course, as long as I have invincibility frames for dodging and parrying, I probably won’t face any serious danger. But beyond that, my stats are practically meaningless.
Still, it seemed like she had no intention of convincing me any further.
“Let’s skip over those trivial details and continue with the explanation.”
“Go ahead…”
So I decided to just go along with it.
After a brief pause, Alkine resumed her explanation.
“We originally intended to gather everyone and depart together, but while waiting for you, the state of the rift began to deteriorate. The others set out ahead, and I decided to bring you separately.”
Wait, excuse me. What?
“The state of the rift deteriorated?”
“Mm. Grain described it as ‘crumpled.’ Rifts are unpredictable as always…”
At that moment, a scene from the original story popped into my head, and I instantly realized what was happening.
“Damn it. President, we’re screwed. Run. Now.”
“…What?”
Before she could react, I started sprinting toward the rift.
Alkine, being much faster, would easily catch up, but there wasn’t enough time to explain the gravity of the situation. Showing her through my actions was faster.
This is insane. Completely insane.
Because of me, we’re on the verge of disaster.
No, it’s not my fault—this is on you, Lilith!
No… never mind. What’s done is done.
Chaotic thoughts swirled in my head as I recalled the details that had just surfaced in my memory.
In the original story, shortly after the protagonist enrolled, they would hear rumors while gathering information about how the entire student council had sustained serious injuries.
Although it was later dismissed as a mere incident, thanks to the heroics of Reina Trier who healed everyone, digging deeper revealed it to be a truly grave event.
A rift whose state had suddenly deteriorated. From that rift, disasters and significantly more powerful monsters began pouring out. The student council, exploring the rift at the time, decided to retreat for their safety.
However, their return was blocked by an anomalous entity in human form.
This creature, later revealed to be a demon called Crumple, only appeared randomly during rift explorations.
Grain’s earlier description, “crumpled,” was almost a direct translation of this demon’s name—testament to how precise his ability was.
Crumple’s ability is to literally crumple portions of the space around it.
This wasn’t a technique or magic but a unique “trait.” Much like my [Irregular], which restricts my stat growth, Crumple’s power falls into a very special category.
Its passive ability to bypass defenses made it a broken opponent. If you rushed in without knowing its countermeasures, you’d be annihilated in no time.
Without Alkine’s heroics, the entire student council would’ve died on the spot without even the chance to escape.
This isn’t just speculation; it’s explicitly written in in-game reports.
And right now?
The entire group, except for Alkine, had already entered the crumpled rift.
Unlike the original story, where the rift deteriorated while they were inside, this time they entered after it had deteriorated. How the situation had changed was unknown, but…
It was far from safe.
In other words, it was a total disaster.
“Why are you suddenly running?!”
As I expected, Alkine caught up to me effortlessly, running alongside me as if it were nothing.
“There’s no time to explain right now! We need to get inside the rift and join them immediately!”
“I really don’t understand you. Fine! I’ll go ahead, so follow me!”
She then sped past me at a pace I couldn’t possibly match.
At least that was a bit of relief. Not that I had any intention of stopping.
I was going to join them as well.
Would someone like me actually be of any help?
I would. That crumpling ability? For some reason, all of its attack patterns could be parried.
To be precise, countering its crumpling patterns with a parry not only nullified the attack but dealt damage back to it.
It’s basically a gimmick boss. That’s how you should think of it.
Anyway! I’m seriously sorry for being late!
I’m on my way now, so please, nobody die!
With that desperate thought, I dashed toward the rift, canceling every movement to go as fast as possible.
Inside the rift, the situation was anything but good.
The terrain was distorted and beginning to collapse.
There was a disaster of magical energy, its source unknown.
And pouring out were waves of overwhelmingly strong monsters.
And yet… the president was nowhere to be seen.
“Stop for a moment. Something’s up ahead.”
The vice president, with abilities second only to Alkine, was somehow managing to hold the situation together, but it was clear he fell short in comparison to her.
“Stay calm. As long as we hold out, the president will come.”
The mere hope that the president would arrive—that was all they had left to cling to.
And that hope was just shattered.
“Arghhh!”
The vice president’s leg was completely “crumpled.”
It twisted unnaturally, as if human bones didn’t exist, and collapsed without resistance.
When confronted with incomprehensible sights, the brain sometimes stops functioning.
Even in a life-or-death situation like this, their thoughts froze. Why is that?
Crack—crunch!
“F***!!!”
This time, the vice president’s left arm was crumpled.
Despite being a strong individual, he barely held onto consciousness. However, it was obvious he was no longer in any state to fight.
The entity that had done this to the vice president—no, the creature merely shaped like a human—shifted its gaze toward the remaining members.
As if selecting who to target next.
That gaze finally snapped the others out of their stupor, and one by one, they began preparing for battle.
“D-damn it. It’s coming. Everyone, get ready.”
“President, please, get here soon.”
They had already realized they couldn’t win on their own. Their only hope was still the president, whose arrival time remained uncertain.
Creak—Creeeak…
With the chilling cry of the monster, despair descended upon them.