Zack's face fell as he gripped his chair to keep from collapsing under the pressure radiating from the Dark Evol in the air.
His eyes were fixed on the two men who had just stepped out of the fissures. They were grotesquely thin, as if their flesh had been stripped away, leaving nothing but skin stretched tight over jagged bones.
Their faces were gaunt, eyes sunken deep, and an overwhelming amount of Dark Evol coiled around their bodies like smoke.
Seeing them, he knew—he was done for. Not just him, but everyone in the class.
'Shit! What are those two doing here? Why so early, so soon? They weren't supposed to show up until a month later—after Max won the Academy's annual Gala!'
Zack drew in a sharp breath. He had read the original story, so even though he had never encountered these two men before, their mere presence made their identities clear. The cursed twins—Error and Lag.
Two infamous, powerful Dark Lights from the underworld, with a massive bounty on their heads placed by the government. They were loyal to the leaders of the Dark Lights, yet seeing them here now was baffling.
Why were they here so soon? In the original story, the twins only made two appearances—once after the Academy Gala, and again when they met their end at Max's hands.
'Wait, one of them just said they're looking for a target... What target? Who? Max isn't even back from the Battle Royale yet! And there's no way they'd come after me, Skyler, or Charles just because we cleared the first level of the Battle Royal in a short time! We aren't even famous—only weak students!'
Just like Zack, the other three students in the classroom were startled by the sudden appearance of the two figures. Judging by the men's dark presence, it was clear they hadn't come with good intentions. Charles and Skyler were also struggling to stay on their feet, fighting against the pressure.
But the eyes of all six students in the class were fixed on the two thin men, clad in dark attire. They anxiously awaited to learn who this 'target' was that one of the men in dark had mentioned earlier, their minds racing.
Finally, the silence in the room was broken as the man who had remained silent raised his eyes to glance at them, a frown settling on his face as he answered his brother.
"Our target is the prince who had the Lost Sapphire of Serenity. He was spotted here and should be nearby. The spy wouldn't risk leading us to the wrong location—he knows what would happen if we got caught. Look for ash-brown hair and blue eyes. We grab the target and leave. The academy is filled with powerful people; we cannot afford to be caught, especially with Alfanzo here."
His taller twin, Lag, nodded. He wasn't very good at remembering things and was a bit slow, which is why his title among the Dark Lights in the underworld was 'Lag'. Anyway, it's not like he remembered his real name. It had been so long since anyone had called him by it that he had simply forgotten.
Zack's eyes instantly snapped to Skyler. Blue eyes. Ash-brown hair. Why the hell did the description match so perfectly? Did he have the Lost Sapphire of Serenity? Really? The same Lost Sapphire of Serenity that was never even found in the novel?
Why? How the freaking hell?? Wasn't the Lost Sapphire of Serenity supposed to be inside the tomb, guarded by a Calamity?
Zack's thoughts spiraled into overdrive.
Then a terrifying realization struck him, sending a chill down his spine.
Skyler hadn't just exited the Battle Royal a day or two earlier than them, but far earlier than both him and Charles. Somehow, he must have gained access to the tomb and found the Lost Sapphire of Serenity.
Zack nearly dropped to his knees, his wide eyes drilling into the back of Skyler's head.
'Fuck! I should've checked Star-Net! What even is this guy? I'm sure he's anything but human! How did Skyler Ironhart manage something even Max couldn't pull off?'
He scrambled for his phone, despite the danger of the situation. But unfortunately, there was no signal— the classroom was clearly sealed off from the outside world.
Charles' eyes were also fixed on Skyler.
Blue eyes and ash-brown hair.
The description matched. Yet, his question was: when did Skyler become a prince?
Weren't his parents just ordinary citizens of the Human Continent, living in a small city? Then, why did the men call him a prince?
Beside him, Skyler wiped his sweaty palms on his pants. He was off to the side, so no one noticed the panic flashing in his eyes.
He had no time to answer the questions running through the minds of those staring at him. He needed to survive this. From the moment the twins appeared, he recognized them—and knew they weren't opponents he could handle. Not yet, at least. So, he had to run. But the pressure made it impossible to move, leaving him rooted in place.
'Damn it! I shouldn't have become so OP! Now even the Dark Lights are after me! And what Lost Sapphire of Serenity? I don't have it—Alistair Thorne does, so go chase him!'
He gritted his teeth. Why were two minor villains—who were supposed to chase after Max—now targeting him instead? Was this some warning telling him to stop flaunting and trying to steal Max's protagonist role? If so... then he was seriously screwed.
His grip on Riruru tightened when the two men stepped forward and locked eyes with him. Sitting in the front row certainly didn't help—of course the duo spotted him within seconds. Still, he did what came naturally: pretended he had no idea what was going on and that he was definitely not a prince, even as they stared directly at his face.
It was then that something stirred inside him, and Skyler lips curled upward ever so slightly. An invisible darkness emanated from his body, enveloping his form.
Riruru glared at the two men, who were clearly causing Skyler distress. Moreover, the presence in the air was making her feel nauseous. She really didn't like the intense amount of Dark Evol surrounding them.
Yet, what Lag said next stunned not just Charles and Zack, but everyone present.
"Bro, I can see ash-brown hair, but no blue eyes... There's no one in the class with blue eyes. Do you have a picture of the target? That would make him easier to identify."
Error frowned and took out his phone.
However, his eyes remained fixed on Skyler. This kid resembled the target in the picture he had seen only once before coming here, but Error remained skeptical. After all, his eyes weren't blue, but unmistakably dark.
They could only remain undetected at Starlight Academy for five minutes before their presence would be detected.
Yet, here they were, wasting time!
He should have looked at the target's picture more carefully. Really.
"Tsk... how annoying."
He murmured under his breath as he hurriedly unlocked his phone. However, his next words snapped the students, who had been staring at Skyler, out of their shock.
"Leave the one with ash-brown hair. Kill the rest. We can't afford any witnesses."
His brother nodded casually. With a simple wave of his hand, every student in the class except Skyler was instantly lifted into the air, their bodies held by chains of wind.
Charles gasped, his eyes alarmed.
They couldn't even fight back! Just how strong were these two men in the dark?
His eyes widened when he saw his friend, Skyler, suddenly walk up to the man in dark clothing, who was looking at his phone. He shouted from behind, despite the invisible wind chains wrapping around his neck.
"What are you doing?! Come back! Run if you can walk, unlike us! You freaking fool!"
Yet, Skyler didn't stop. Under the horrified gazes of the others, he leaned in to peek at the screen of the phone in Error's hand.
"Need some help?"
Error's eyes immediately snapped up to meet his—and he froze. Dark lines pulsed from Skyler's eyes, shadows flickering like tendrils around his irises. He stepped back, only to frown. Why was he flinching under the gaze of a mere 10-star Elementist?
Sure, Skyler had five elemental crystals in his body—but he was still just a 10-star.
This shouldn't be enough to startle him.
Annoyed, Error shot him a dark glare and raised his hand to swat him away like a bug. But before he could, a powerful force struck his chest, hurling him backward. He crashed into the wall behind him with a loud thud, the impact rattling his bones. His phone slipped from his hand, clattering to the floor.
His brother, Lag, who had noticed Skyler approaching him but hadn't intervened—confident Error could easily swat the youth aside—rushed forward. But the moment he moved, a shadow blurred across his vision.
Before he could react, he too was sent flying into the wall, the air driven from his lungs.
Skyler folded his sleeves and parted his lips, but his voice came out low and scratchy.
"Finally... I was itching to come out."