Chapter One: Opposition

  “That one’s call torments me every night. He promises a world where power decides everything, where fate rests in the hands of the one who claims the throne. So I swore an oath—to bring as many players as possible into that world. And I will be part of it as well. Game on.”

  The room was dim and cold. The light flickered on and off.

  Standing before the mirror, Yeri gave a cold smile.

  An Asian man with glossy black hair falling to his shoulders. His eyes were empty. Dark circles bruised the skin beneath them. He was tall but gaunt. His refined features had been muddied by the mortal world.

  The clicking sound of assembling and disassembling a gun echoed endlessly in his small room. An MP5K bought from a Middle Eastern black market. Six grenades from the same place. He wore a bulletproof vest, dark sunglasses, and a hood.

  Yeri lit a cigarette for himself. He inhaled and exhaled slowly. The door to his room opened, then closed. That tall figure headed toward Johnson High School.

  “Students, class is over. Don’t forget your homework.”

  Mr. Leo closed the Grade 11 physics textbook and put his materials into his leather bag. Students from other classes poured out into the hallway as the bell rang. The corridor became lively and crowded. But his class was different—

  The boys left first, while the girls remained seated for a full five minutes before he walked out.

  “Mr. Leo always looks so tense! But he’s so handsome!”

  Leo Haruno was a young teacher with exceptional intelligence and extraordinary physical ability. He skipped grades and earned his bachelor’s degree in education at seventeen. At twenty, he became the head physics teacher at the most prestigious high school in the capital—Johnson High School.

  Leo was a man of few words, but upright. He was kind, and his moral compass was clear. In the eyes of the students, he was a talented and handsome man—a shining role model for the entire school.

  Leo walked down the corridor. His tall frame made him stand out in the crowd. His face was fair, his features sharp and refined. Long eyelashes. Blonde hair slicked back, with a few loose strands falling over his forehead. His voice was gentle, soft enough that both male and female students couldn’t help but look up to him as “Big Brother Leo.” The age gap was not large. To them, this teacher was like an older brother.

  Amid the noise of dismissal—laughter and chatter filling the halls—a loud boom thundered across the sky. Then came countless screams.

  Leo’s face darkened. Cold sweat soaked through his shirt. That was clearly gunfire.

  He shouted, directing the students to evacuate. It was the first time they had heard fear in their teacher’s voice. They immediately obeyed this older brother of theirs.

  “Johnson High School has only one exit gate. The gunshots came from the entrance. If the shooter wants to hunt people, he must occupy the main building opposite the gate. From there, he can reach the cafeteria, go upstairs—but! The farthest he can reach is the gym building. To get there from the main building, he has to cross an open area. The police will arrive soon. The safest place for the students to hide… is the gym. Damn it.”

  Leo bit his lip hard. He pointed toward the gym building, ordering all students to head there. The school population had thinned; fortunately, it was dismissal time, so there wasn’t too much crowding.

  As the hallway gradually emptied, Leo swallowed.

  He should hide.

  But he couldn’t feel at ease.

  “What if there are still other students? I don’t know the shooter’s current position.”

  More gunshots snapped him back to reality.

  His brows furrowed. He sprinted toward the sound of gunfire, his face resolute, filled with courage.

  Yeri glanced at the remaining bullets in his gun. Around fourteen left. He had fired sixteen.

  The police would be arriving soon.

  His cold gaze flicked toward the hallway behind him. Blood dyed the floor red. The bodies of students and teachers lay scattered across the corridor. Some had made it to the door. Some had trampled over others in panic.

  Yeri lit another cigarette. The click of the lighter was emotionless. He exhaled slowly, savoring the faint buzz spreading through his head.

  Suddenly, he sensed something rushing toward him. He turned.

  A chair flew straight at him. Behind it, a man charged forward with a fist drawn back.

  In a single reflexive second, the muzzle rose. He shattered the wooden chair with gunfire. Bullets and splinters tore past Leo’s body—

  Leo’s fist drove forward, firm and precise, slamming straight into the terrorist’s face.

  Leo moved past the row of lockers and turned left.

  He stepped into the main hall—and froze.

  His eyes turned murky. His hand covered his mouth. His face twisted.

  He was standing in a pool of blood.

  People who had been laughing and talking with him just hours ago were now lying there.

  The teacher’s gaze darkened.

  “Rest in peace,” Leo thought.

  At the end of the corridor stood a cold, demonic silhouette. No emotion. No mercy.

  Leo clenched his fists so hard that his palms began to bleed.

  He stepped lightly into a nearby room, lifted a chair with one hand, and advanced—each step soft as a feather—toward the madman puffing on his cigarette.

  He hurled the chair.

  His legs sank low, gathering force—

  Then he launched forward.

  The punch landed squarely on Yeri’s face.

  His body reeled. The sunglasses fell to the floor. He sucked in a sharp breath as his body bent backward. In the same motion, he drove a kick straight into Leo.

  The teacher was thrown back over a meter.

  “So strong!” Leo had not expected the man who looked like a stick to possess such force.

  Regaining his balance, Yeri raised the muzzle and hastily aimed at Leo. The bastard’s face twisted from pain—yet he grinned, strangely.

  Leo gulped in air. His eyes locked onto the barrel.

  He felt Death breathing down his neck.

  His pupils shrank.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Quickly, his long arm grabbed the large potted plant beside him and shoved it down.

  Gunfire exploded through the corridor. The several-hundred-dollar plant shattered in an instant.

  Two—then three bullets tore through Leo’s body.

  His shoulder. His abdomen. His left bicep.

  Each wound throbbed in waves, burning like fire.

  The gunfire stopped.

  A sharp, hollow clicking sound echoed.

  Yeri clicked his tongue. He had emptied the magazine.

  His hand slipped inside his vest and pulled out another one.

  For a split second, the terrorist’s gaze loosened.

  Leo scooped up a handful of dirt and flung it at Yeri’s face.

  Yeri in a brink of the eye, his back hand knock the upcoming clump of dirt away.

  But when he looked again, Leo was gone.

  Swiftly reloading, he adjusted his vest.

  He picked up his sunglasses.

  The cigarette suddenly tasted bland. He crushed it against the floor.

  “Interesting.”

  Yeri smirked. He stared at the floor. Leo’s blood-soaked footprints formed a clear trail to his current location.

  A quick assessment—Leo was wounded. Hunting him down now would be inefficient. Students were certainly still nearby. His mission was to take as many lives as possible, not to engage in a personal duel. He had to optimize his time before the police arrived.

  But…

  “That’s the thinking of cowards.”

  "Not in a million years i will ever meet a man like this, i have lived for who knows how long, 30 years sound terribly short but for me it was eternity. I never saw anything like that. Such determination in that person's eyes, like a cold dagger cut through my skin, his actions speak for himself... This non-verbal conversation... is rather amusing."

  Yeri followed the blood trail directly, his blood surging with excitement.

  Every night he dreamed of a glorious death. A battle worthy of him. Someone who could satisfy the beast inside him. That dream guided him. He knew it wasn’t just a dream.

  That man’s voice and gestures—were real.

  “Hey. Kill a few for me. Any method is fine. Death is the gate. Once you’re done, take yourself out too. No need for formalities. By the time you become a player, we won’t be meeting again anyway. That’s it.”

  Leo leaned against the wall.

  He drew in air in broken breaths. The wounds burned like fire. His heart pounded like a drum. His vision darkened at the edges.

  His hand trembled from adrenaline as he covered his face.

  In that hand was his tie, pulled free from his shirt.

  He gripped it tightly. His eyes were filled with resolve.

  The blood trail led Yeri to the locker hallway.

  Lockers lined both sides, toppled over in long rows. Each was just large enough to fit one person.

  Yeri stopped.

  He slowly lowered himself to one knee.

  Leo clicked his tongue softly. The tie was ready. If Yeri stepped within range of the locker, he would strangle him.

  He is bare-footed, for a simple plan, he put his bloody shoes inside the locker, which draws blood mark, and found another hiding spot to preying on Yeri.

  Yeri stared at the bloody footprints leading into one locker. He let out a sigh.

  “Normally, I’d open that door and kill you. That’s probably your plan. But I know you could’ve taken your shoes off and hidden in a different locker.”

  “You’re probably a teacher. Strategic thinking and courage—two essential traits, right?”

  “But what you lack… is experience. And the ability to assess your enemy’s strength.”

  “Especially when that enemy has a gun.”

  Leo’s heart skipped a beat, as if seized in a fist.

  Yeri unloaded thirty rounds into both rows of lockers. He was not foolish enough to approach. The gunfire dragged on for nearly a full minute. The smell of gunpowder and death blanketed the hallway of Johnson High School. Smoke and dust from shattered concrete clouded the air. After a moment, the debris slowly settled.

  Yeri smiled faintly, expecting the body of the man who dared challenge him to collapse onto the floor—expecting to clearly witness his enemy’s death.

  His pupils tightened. His face twisted.

  No body fell.

  The lockers had been riddled through. Doors and cement were torn apart. The locker marked by Leo’s bloodstains—its door now peppered with bullet holes—hung slightly ajar. Inside, there were only Leo’s shoes.

  But where was he?

  Had he run?

  Yeri bit down hard on his lip. If the man had fled from the start, then all of this lost its meaning. The excitement drained. Now he felt like a demon ready to devour any life in sight—no more games. His small thrill had been trampled by a coward.

  Anger surged. He pressed the magazine release; the empty clip dropped. He slammed in a new one and strode forward, fury blazing.

  A loud crash erupted above his head.

  Yeri’s instincts reacted violently.

  He turned upward—

  A foot smashed straight into his face.

  Leo drove him to the ground, knee pinning him down.

  Yeri struggled, confused for a split second. His killing intent burned upward toward Leo. The teacher’s eyes looked down at him like a judge delivering sentence. Behind Leo’s shoulder, a hole gaped in the ceiling.

  The corridor ceiling had been fitted with panel boards.

  After placing his shoes inside the locker, Leo had climbed onto its top, removed a ceiling panel, and pulled himself up. The entire sequence had taken less than ten seconds. He had listened to the gunfire below, then the footsteps drawing into range. Certain of his advantage, he kicked open the panel directly above the terrorist and dropped down like a starving tiger.

  Leo’s tie tightened around Yeri’s neck.

  Yeri roared, eyes blazing with murderous intent. He struggled to draw breath, but the fabric crushed his throat. Dizziness crept in.

  The threat of defeat ignited his will. He began laughing madly.

  A chill ran down Leo’s spine. He pressed his weight harder onto Yeri’s body. The terrorist’s hands could not reach the trigger.

  Sirens wailed in the main hall.

  Heavy and hurried footsteps approached.

  Victory was close.

  Leo tightened the tie even further.

  “YOU’VE LOST! DANM BASTARD!”

  Leo roared, yanking the tie toward himself, lifting the cold-blooded bastard by the neck. Pain stabbed through his hands from the force of the choke. His wounds burst open, blood spilling like a stream—but today, he swore, if he didn’t finish this monster, he wasn’t a man.

  “They’re children! They have dreams! Some of them fight through hardships you can’t even imagine! Do you know how hard they’ve tried?! Are you even human?!”

  Leo’s voice cracked with rage and emotion. Hatred and disgust burned in his eyes. Tears ran down his face—but he refused to loosen his grip.

  “…Name’s… Yeri.”

  Yeri rasped as he struggled. His airway was crushed, his voice thin—yet still cold.

  Then—

  A metallic click.

  Time seemed to freeze as Leo’s eyes dropped to Yeri’s hand.

  On his ring finger was what Leo had thought to be a ring—attached to a thin wire.

  A grenade.

  Yeri smiled in triumph.

  Leo released the tie. His face drained of color. Sweat poured down. Instinct screamed at him to retreat—

  Too late.

  The last thing Leo saw was a blinding flash of light. His ears rang. Then everything went dark.

  Leo stood in pitch-black emptiness.

  His heart pounded like a drum—then slowly calmed.

  His eyes lowered.

  He was standing on nothing. Surrounded by nothing.

  Limbo?

  Leo lay back in the void and exhaled long and slow. At least he had stalled that bastard. Maybe even taken him with him.

  Would he meet the King of Hell? The Pearly Gates?

  He didn’t believe in religion anymore anyway.

  How dull.

  “Hold on now. You young people are always in such a hurry. Even in death, you’re rushing?”

  The voice echoed through the boundless silence.

  Footsteps emerged from nothingness and stopped before him.

  A tall man with a balanced build and a faintly gentle face appeared. He smiled lightly. The orange kasaya he wore drifted despite the still air. One hand slipped into the fold of his robe as he materialized. He sat down calmly before Leo and pressed a finger to the center of his forehead.

  Leo could not resist. Could not move.

  It felt as though his soul were pinned down by hundreds of invisible chains.

  “Welcome, Leo Haruno, to the Sacred Conquest Board.”

  “If you have questions, ask Yzy.”

  The gentle voice hummed beside his ear.

  Then everything warped.

  His senses felt torn apart and stitched back together. His flesh stretched like rubber pulled toward the horizon. For a fleeting instant, he felt no longer human.

  And then—

  Normal.

  Sunlight warmed his face.

  Leo inhaled sharply. The scent of clean air was unmistakable. Solid ground supported his feet.

  He looked around.

  A golden temple stood firm and radiant. Three sides were enclosed by structures. An open courtyard lay at the center. One side faced a gate.

  Standing in that solemn space, Leo felt a chill crawl over him.

  He had barely processed the change when—

  “Hello. We meet again, teacher.”

  A familiar voice came from the far end of the temple.

  Him.

  Yeri.

  Whole and unharmed, standing beneath the sunlight. His hand gripped the MP5K tightly, finger resting on the trigger.

  A chill shot down Leo’s spine—then his face hardened.

  “It’s you! Yeri! Damn it! Where is this?! What the hell are you trying to do?!”

  Leo clenched his fists. Face to face with the enemy who refused to die, hatred snapped his focus into place. His eyes locked onto the terrorist.

  “Hey. I still don’t know your name, teacher.”

  “Give me one reason why I should tell you.”

  Leo shifted toward one side of the gate structure. The stone looked thick enough to stop bullets. He intended to use the conversation to buy time and form a plan. But unlike the familiar layout of the school, this temple carried a strange, unsettling aura. He assumed Yeri also knew nothing about its structure—

  Still, it was difficult.

  Yeri had a gun.

  Leo cautiously exposed part of his face to look at him.

  His pupils shrank.

  His jaw nearly dropped.

  “Yzy. Look at that player over there. What’s his name?”

  A grotesque fly the size of a small dog hovered around Yeri. Its body was made of warped flesh, bones protruding through meat, a twisted skeletal frame visible beneath torn skin. Its wings buzzed violently in the air.

  “Oh, that one is… Leo Haruno.”

  Its voice sounded like a child’s—yet off in an unnatural way.

  Yeri shoved his hand straight into its mouth.

  Leo stared, stunned by the surreal scene unfolding before him.

  “Use ten of my points. Buy a dagger.”

  Yeri pulled out a dagger and slid it across the ground. It skidded to a stop at Leo’s feet.

  Leo looked down at the weapon. A thousand questions stormed his mind. Sweat traced down his refined face.

  Yeri burst into laughter.

  “Welcome to the SCB, Leo Haruno.”

  End of chapter 1