A special magic tool provided within the academy.
This tool, which resembles a small tablet, is equipped with a function to send messages.
It also has features to view news or announcements within the academy, but due to these functions, students simply call it the “Messenger.”
Unfortunately, this Messenger could only be used inside the academy since the circuits that transmitted its signals were installed exclusively within the premises.
Well, for students who rarely leave the academy anyway, this limitation didn’t really matter.
However, the academy didn’t just hand out this excellent Messenger for free.
Or rather, they did, but with a bit of discrimination.
For the higher class, there was no limit to the number of transmissions.
For the intermediate class, a limit of 150 transmissions per day was imposed.
For the lower class, it was even stricter, with a limit of 300 transmissions per week.
Of course, if it were only used for essential purposes, it wouldn’t be an issue.
But would kids this age use such a feature strictly for official purposes? Most, if not all, would use it for personal conversations.
Especially Seria. She used it so excessively that I felt fortunate she didn’t have a limit.
[Seria: Rudion, are you awake?]
[Seria: I just came back from Lilith’s room.]
[Seria: You wouldn’t believe how messy it was.]
[Seria: You really should’ve seen how cluttered it was.]
[Seria: Your room is tidy, right?]
[Seria: I’d like to see it sometime if I get the chance.]
She always had so much to say. Sending me a bombardment of messages every night before bed was practically her routine.
Yes, my room is tidy. But I can’t show it to you because the wall is broken.
Why are you even trying to enter the boys’ dormitory? That’s against the rules, you know.
Even though this Messenger was great for communication, I didn’t really have anyone to message or anyone messaging me besides Seria, so it mostly stayed unused.
Just in case, I carried it with me, but I kept all notifications turned off and buried it in my bag.
-Beeep!
That’s why, when it went off during class, I was startled.
It ended up drawing a lot of attention in the middle of the lecture. Both Professor Reina, who was conducting the lecture, and the students attending the class, turned their eyes toward me.
When I sneakily took it out to check, there was a message from Alkine.
[Alkine: If you see this message, please come to the student council immediately. A new rift has appeared.]
Since the message didn’t specify anyone, it seemed to have been sent to all student council members.
Judging by the unusual alert sound, it must have been sent as an emergency message.
It’s essentially a disaster notification that only authorized individuals could send.
Seria, sitting next to me, glanced at my Messenger and spoke.
“You need to go right away.”
“Looks like it.”
“Hmm.”
She glanced at her bag briefly but… unfortunately, her Messenger was silent.
Of course, Alkine wouldn’t involve a newly admitted freshman in a rift exploration.
I’m just an exceptional case.
“I’ll work hard so I can join soon.”
Although she pretended otherwise, she looked quite disheartened.
But there was no need for her to feel that way.
At her current level, she was already good enough to join.
I had seen her demonstrate magic during Lilith’s training, and it was far beyond what you’d expect at this stage.
If Alkine had seen her skills, she’d seriously tell her to join.
By the original story’s standards, she was at least mid-second-year level already.
In the story, Seria had already solidified her position as the top student by that point. While she couldn’t carry out solo operations yet, she was more than capable as part of an exploration team.
I should take the chance to vouch for her next time. She seemed really upset about not receiving even a single message.
Anyway, since I was summoned, I needed to hurry.
The lecture? Forget it. Learning about “The Fundamentals of Mana” wasn’t critical right now. Besides, student council duties take priority.
You might think it’s a bit much, but failing to manage a rift would cause major trouble for the academy, so there wasn’t much choice.
“Professor, the student council has summoned me, so I need to leave.”
“Go ahead.”
After explaining the situation to Professor Reina, I got permission to leave easily.
“Take care.”
“Study hard.”
“…Don’t treat me like a kid.”
And to Seria, who was still somewhat downcast, I casually threw out a joke, as usual, before leaving.
“They’re already summoning you to the student council?”
“I knew you were on a different level, but I didn’t realize you were capable enough to contribute there.”
“It’s like hitting a wall…”
I heard murmurs around me, but I neither cared to listen nor found it necessary to understand.
As soon as I stepped out of the classroom, I headed straight for the student council.
Even though it was an emergency summons, it didn’t seem too urgent, so I didn’t rush like I had before.
When I arrived and stepped inside, I immediately felt an unfriendly gaze.
It seemed news had already spread that I had been appointed to an officer position.
Despite such reactions, Alkine shamelessly welcomed me as if she were oblivious.
“You’re here. Take a seat over here.”
She even reserved a seat for me in advance—right next to hers.
Please, President, stop doing things like this. Every time you do, the Vice President looks at me like he’s about to kill me.
After taking my seat, we waited a bit longer until all the student council members, except Seria, were present.
Once everyone was accounted for, Alkine stood up immediately.
“Alright, now that we’re all here, let’s head out.”
No detailed explanation was given. The student council’s duties when a rift appeared were always the same.
Besides, on the first day, our primary task was to survey the entrance of the rift and gather information, so no grand preparations were necessary.
“Why is it happening again after just a week?”
“Don’t tell me it’s another weird rift like last time.”
“Hey, don’t joke about that, even as a joke.”
“Why are you more worked up about it than I am? I was the one who got hurt last time.”
The atmosphere was light enough for casual chatter.
But maybe that lightheartedness was a flag for trouble.
On the way to the rift, Grain’s expression suddenly turned serious.
“President, something feels off.”
She even voiced her concern outright.
The previously relaxed mood grew more somber, and everyone quickened their pace toward the rift.
The moment we arrived, everyone froze.
Before us was a rift unlike anything we had ever seen.
Crackle, crackle.
The rift, which should have been quietly stable, was writhing violently, emitting sounds as though it might burst at any moment.
To make matters worse, the crimson aura that should have been emanating from the rift’s core was now gushing wildly from the rift itself.
Of course, it seemed like I was the only one who could see this, but piecing together all the information, there was no other explanation.
This was a sign of a rift going berserk.
I urgently questioned Alkine.
“President, do you know how long it’s been since that rift appeared?”
“It’s been about an hour.”
“Damn it.”
Normally, a berserk rift occurs when one is left unattended for a long time.
The internal energy swells without being managed and eventually erupts, spilling out uncontrollably.
But that process usually takes at least a month. One hour isn’t nearly enough time.
Could this also be due to the difficulty setting? Something like: “In this difficulty, rifts are naturally generated on the verge of going berserk”?
There was no point in pondering. Even if I figured out the truth, it wouldn’t stop the rift from going berserk right now.
Surveying the surroundings, I saw that everyone seemed unsure of what to do, standing on guard but otherwise frozen.
It couldn’t be helped.
In this world, the system was so well-maintained that berserk rifts rarely occurred near inhabited areas.
Only true veterans who had been through countless trials and tribulations had knowledge of this phenomenon.
For the student council, which handled rifts the moment they appeared, this was an entirely unfamiliar situation.
Sure, they might have learned about it in theory, but theory and practice are two different things.
Just in case, I asked Alkine, but she only shook her head.
“I’m afraid I’m unprepared. I’ve heard of such cases happening frequently in my homeland, but I’ve never experienced one myself.”
“Well, that’s about what I expected.”
Even though the Northern region experiences rifts as often as daily meals, Alkine was probably still a child when she lived there.
It’s unreasonable to expect someone who had their first rift experience as a student council member to have insights based on the Northern region’s occurrences.
If even Alkine didn’t know much, it was unlikely anyone else would.
Ah, seriously. I had planned to quietly secure my contribution points this time, but it’s all ruined now.
As Alkine was racking her brain over how to handle the situation, I approached her with a suggestion.
“President, we have two options.”
“What are they?”
“One, you and I enter the rift and deal with the core as quickly as possible.”
“And the other?”
“Let it explode, let everything turn chaotic, and request help from the academy afterward.”
Entering the rift didn’t guarantee success, but it was better than doing nothing.
If we failed, we’d naturally move on to the second option.
Of course, there was a chance that entering the rift could trigger an eruption, which might result in us getting expelled alongside monsters and being surrounded.
But I could dodge and run around, while Alkine could slice through them effortlessly, so it wouldn’t be too dangerous.
…Why would I go in, you ask? Well, to earn contribution points, obviously.
As expected, Alkine chose the first option.
After making her decision, she seemed to have a doubt and asked me a question.
“Do we really need to go in as just the two of us? Wouldn’t it be more efficient to have everyone go in together to deal with the core?”
“You want to bring everyone into that unstable rift? Do you know what could happen?”
If we all entered and failed, we’d be scattered and expelled alongside the monsters inside.
Then everyone would have to find their way out on their own, which was frankly unsettling.
It’s not because they’re weak. My stats were much lower, so I couldn’t dismiss the student council’s capabilities.
The issue was the unpredictable nature of the creatures emerging from rifts, which made the situation inherently risky.
Unless you possessed overwhelming power like Alkine, you could never be certain of the outcome.
There’s already been a precedent for this—the rift distortion incident last time.
Of course, that incident was chaotic due to the demons, but even the mutated monsters at the time were difficult to handle individually.
Alkine seemed to understand this and didn’t refute my argument.
“As the student council president, it feels wrong to rely on you like this, but for now, I have no choice but to follow your suggestion.”
“There’s nothing to feel bad about. If someone doesn’t know something, we help each other out.”
“Thanks for saying that.”
With that, the plan was set: Alkine and I would tackle the rift while the rest of the team stayed on guard nearby, prepared to respond if the rift erupted.
When this was announced to everyone, one person, grinding their teeth, protested vehemently.
“President! Why are you taking him with you? You should be taking me instead…!”
Despite his objections, the decision had already been made and wasn’t going to change.
Honestly, from a purely combat perspective, taking the vice president would have been better. But in situations like this, a seasoned veteran, even with lower stats, is more reliable than raw talent.
Besides, Alkine seemed quite fed up with Diggers’ obsessive behavior, so she was unlikely to ditch me in favor of him.
The rest of the members gave me questioning looks, but thanks to my appointed position, they seemed to assume there was some reason behind the decision and refrained from voicing further doubts.
“Why… why would she take someone like him…”
Leaving the grumbling Diggers behind, Alkine and I stepped into the rift, which seemed ready to explode at any moment.