…Just to Save One Person.
Documents on the desk caught my eye.
Ability User Research
Ability Target Expansion
Drug Influence Estimation
…Drugs?
At that moment, my senses—expanded beyond their limits—rang an alarm.
The options clearly said the probability of sneaking in undetected was 100%.
The probability of sneaking 'in'. Getting caught after entry would be my own mistake.
I should have kept my ability activated at all times.
I messed up.
I sensed a presence. A powerful one. An active hero, at least B-rank or higher. Could I handle them? I can't win. Escape? A draw?
Even if I sacrificed part of my body, could I get away?
No—this was a government facility, and anyone patrolling it would obviously be government. Going back to the academy wouldn't help either…
My thoughts spiraled into complexity.
"Nice to meet you."
It was an old man's voice. He'd aged.
Only two active heroes still worked into old age—one guarded the Gangbuk barrier, the other was out in the field.
Which meant the owner of that voice was a retired hero.
If he's retired, I can take him.
Kill him? Would there be an option to choose death?
If saving one person meant killing another…
I weighed lives on the scales. Compared them.
A belief worth calling one had formed, belatedly.
Save every human I could touch.
But did I have the resolve to kill another reachable human to save the one precious to me?
Hesitation crept into my actions.
"Not even a reply…"
"Who are you?" I answered without turning around, eyes fixed on the documents.
The words on the papers wouldn't come into focus.
I felt like I might vomit.
Pressure bore down on me.
"I'm the Principal."
"…Pardon?"
"The Principal of Heart Soul Academy. The one you attend."
The Principal—why would he…?
It was a familiar voice, now that I thought about it.
Knowing his identity made it clear.
I turned around.
There was one man blocking the entrance I'd just come through, an elderly figure in a suit.
His ability: unknown. An ability user who never revealed what he wielded.
The information gap was massive.
Ability user battles were mostly wars of information.
How much you revealed, how much you withheld. Whether you had it or not.
Those two factors decided victory or defeat.
Right now, I was overwhelmingly disadvantaged.
I subtly moved my hand toward the red cape.
"Planning to draw?"
"……."
"I'm not here to make an enemy of you."
"Then…"
"Cadet Ivy Lane. You're here to learn about her, aren't you?"
I swallowed hard.
Maintaining composure was hard.
He already knew my goal.
Which meant Moon Sa-hae, who gave me info on this facility to help me… she was in danger too.
My body went cold.
Because of my insistence, my plea—others might suffer.
That realization tensed my muscles.
He began observing me. His presence outclassed mine. He held the clear advantage.
[Flee.]
Success Probability: 0%
…No good, huh.
The Principal spoke.
"I'm not here to fight you."
"I can't believe that."
"As proof—you're still alive, aren't you?"
His tone implied he could kill me anytime.
Unfortunately, it was true.
With that skill gap, my head could roll in an instant, and it wouldn't be strange.
I was alive now only by his permission.
"What's your goal?"
"What you know."
"…Pardon?"
"Knowledge is power. Do you know that?"
"Yes."
"Who said it?"
"Francis Bacon… right?"
"A rare young man."
Praise?
The Principal continued.
"In this era, it's no exaggeration to say knowledge is everything. Know your opponent's ability. Know their info. It all ties to power."
I frowned.
He eyed me briefly, then muttered to himself again.
I showed no reaction.
"Let me explain my ability."
"…Pardon?"
"My ability turns knowledge and information into power. Literally, 'knowledge is power.'"
No reason to tell me that.
A lie?
A tactic: lie about your ability to deceive in battle.
I'd learned that sparring against Teacher Gun-seok.
"Why?"
"To earn your trust."
Bam. A loud crash—the floor tiles shattered.
He was behind me now.
If he'd attacked to kill, I'd be dead once. Right this instant.
"…!"
"How many times must I spare you before you believe me?"
"To be honest, I can't."
"Is that so?" The Principal touched the documents.
The text on them turned to black threads, peeling from the paper.
The threads flowed into his ears.
"Ah, this is part of my ability. Putting knowledge into my head."
"…Consuming knowledge?"
"No, not consuming. But the cost-performance isn't great."
"……."
"Over eighty years, I've lived collecting knowledge—and that's how I reached this position."
He gauged my reaction, then added one more line.
"Even so, this speed was my limit."
"That's impressive enough."
"No. You could go faster."
"What do you mean?"
"It means you have talent."
I slowly put distance between us again.
Backing away naturally.
Thanks to that, I couldn't see the documents on the table anymore.
"Ah, I forgot."
"……."
"You infiltrated this facility to learn about Cadet Ivy Lane. Isn't that right?"
"What are you getting at?"
"Straight to the point. Ivy Lane is a regressor."
—A regressor?
"I don't quite…"
"It's her ability. She turns back time. Sets a desired point and returns there. The condition is her own death."
"Death…?"
"To put it in terms young people understand: death regression, save and load. She calls it Memento Mori herself."
[Press on the lie.]
Success Probability: 0%
The options had detected the Principal's lie.
He was hiding something.
Intentionally omitting specifics.
Is 'regressor' true? Or the death condition? Returning to a desired point? How much is real?
My head grew complicated.
No—bring it up.
I resolved myself.
He had no intention of killing me now. Rather… he was trying to persuade me for something.
I was necessary to him.
"You lied to me."
"Hm?"
"Tell me honestly."
Was this pressing? The options hadn't judged it as selecting yet.
I'd just mentioned the lie.
"I mixed in a lie just now. That's your judgment?"
"Yes."
"Not yours." He followed my gaze.
At the end of my line of sight: the options.
"……."
"An ability that shows paths not taken, choices. But that's not how you should use it."
"What…?"
"Later for that story. First, info on Ivy Lane. Aren't you curious?"
I decided to hear him out first.
Couldn't tell truth from lie, but I needed info.
Didn't I want to save everyone?
Did I come here just to save one person?
No answer came to my own question.
Only the Principal's voice echoed back. He spoke.
"Ivy Lane is a regressor, inheriting her info through a spear."
"…Spear?"
"Not the one you gave Ivy Lane, but another already lodged in her body."
"What is it? I never saw a spear…"
He smiled faintly. "We call things made from monster materials, or naturally occurring ones, relics. You know?"
"Yes."
"Then, what about monsters with no vital signs?"
"Pardon?"
"Humanity's monster detection system closely monitors vital signs and mana reactions. If they're different from humans, it alarms."
I nodded.
It felt like reviewing academy lessons.
"So why the preamble?"
"Impatient personality, unlike your looks. Because it's about her?"
"……."
"The spear in Cadet Ivy Lane's heart is a Type 1 monster: 'Inheritance and Collection Spear.'"
…What? Type 1?
"Why in Ivy's chest… No, how?"
"That monster takes item form and shows no vital signs. It relies on its host's mana, so it evades mana detection." The Principal continued. "She repeats regressions, saving and inheriting her status and info in that spear. If a loop goes wrong, she discards all memories into the spear and starts over."
"……."
"Moderates and radicals still argue over how to use the regressor. She doesn't know the spear's true nature yet. She's already discarded those memories."
"So, what do you want?"
The Principal said, "I need you."
"I'm weak."
"More precisely: not current you."
I watched his mouth.
He moved.
"I need future you. To check moderates and radicals, and protect Ivy Lane—not as a regressor, but as one human."
He extended his hand.
The options: shake it, or don't. Two choices.
Even with my ability active, no options appeared earlier because he didn't want me to see.
"Will you resolve to foresee ever-changing futures, repeating the same acts unknowingly, eternally?"
"…Just to save one person."
"Saving one person is saving everyone."
"I have the resolve."
I took his hand. I didn't know his intentions, or the point of this talk. Only one thing was clear.
[Save her.]
Success Probability: —%
No option to flee. Because that's what I wanted.