Lesley watched as the boy fell into the illusion.
'Something about this guy is off.'
She could sense his Sigil progression—only Early-Stage Expert, two sub-stages below her. Yet, despite the gap, he gave off a bad vibe.
So, she tested him. Called him weak, ignorant—poked at his pride.
But instead of defending himself, he showed interest. Curiosity.
That alone made him dangerous.
As Lesley assessed him, Alvin opened his eyes.
No hesitation. No visible shock.
As if he had never been caught in an illusion at all.
Calmly, he reached for his coffee, taking a slow sip of the bitter liquid.
Lesley's eyes widened slightly before she smirked.
'Interesting. Very interesting.'
"You put me in an illusion without warning?" Alvin tilted his head.
Lesley grinned. "Out there, the enemy won't give you a friendly heads-up before stabbing you in the gut. So either stay ready or stay dead."
Alvin's eyes narrowed slightly.
'Interesting choice of words… however—'
He nodded. "Indeed."
Then...
Black mist swallowed Lesley whole.
Her body tensed. Before she could react, the world lurched.
Something was wrong.
Her vision spun, the angles twisting unnaturally—until she saw it.
A headless body.
Her body.
Realization hit like a hammer.
It wasn't the world that had rotated.
It was her head.
Then,
A sharp flick of fingers.
Everything snapped back to normal.
Lesley gasped, hands trembling as she sucked in ragged breaths.
A voice cut through her panic.
"You need to be careful, Lesley," Alvin said, tone cold. "You never know when or how the enemy will attack."
Her gaze shot up—only to meet his piercing, indifferent eyes staring down at her.
It was an illusion.
Just an illusion.
But her stomach twisted, the phantom feeling of her own decapitation still lingering.
She barely held back the urge to vomit before bolting for the restroom.
Watching her retreat, Alvin casually took another sip of his coffee.
'…I wonder if I'll ever get a girlfriend with my attitude.'
Alvin pulled out his mobile, scrolling through Lesley's information.
As a future Seated Candidate, he had access to all academy records.
Not that he needed this.
-----------------
Code Name: Lesley
True Name: Reyna Lucas
Age: 18
Batch: 207-56
Rank: 1st
Sigil: Five-Leaf Clover
Sigil Progression: Late-Stage Expert
Elements: Lightning, Water
Evaluation: A promising Candidate with weird talking issues and a hidden superiority complex.
-----------------
Alvin blinked.
'Weird talking issues, huh? That explains it.'
It wasn't that he minded, but doing whatever she wanted wasn't good for either of them.
Then—his ears caught the whispers of a few academy girls sitting nearby.
"That guy is so handsome and dreamy."
"Right? That earring just makes him look even cooler."
"I wonder if I can get his number…"
"Don't even think about it. Didn't you see that girl? She's probably his girlfriend."
"You're right. Even if she's not, I bet he's already dated a few girls."
"Yeah, we should be careful not to fall for a playboy."
Then,
They ignored him completely.
Alvin's expression darkened. His head lowered slightly.
'…I'm definitely never getting a girlfriend.'
A voice pulled Alvin from his wandering thoughts.
"Are you, by any chance, T.C.M.N.?"
Alvin lifted his gaze.
A man in his late twenties stood before him—green hair, green eyes. Crandall.
"Ah, yes. Are you Mr. Crandall?"
T.C.M.N.—a coded phrase used between Twilight Crown and Moonlight Nightmare.
Crandall casually took a seat.
"Then let's discuss the mission."
No small talk. No hesitation.
"We don't have time to waste."
"If we miss this opportunity, the target will enroll in Everbright Academy."
"That'll make completing the mission… problematic."
Alvin nodded, already shifting into work mode.
Lesley was completely forgotten.
Crandall slid a file across the table.
"According to our reports, Alvida plans to explore the minor ruins."
Alvin's gaze sharpened. "Do we have details? Is it privately owned?"
Crandall shook his head.
"No. It's newly discovered. The council hasn't assigned it to any family or guild yet."
"And yet, Alvida is personally going in?" Alvin mused.
"Which means the Vaelcrest family is interested."
Alvin exhaled. "That doesn't matter."
What mattered was something else entirely.
His gaze locked onto Crandall. "One thing's been bothering me, though."
Crandall raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"
Alvin leaned forward.
"What exactly did Alvida do?"
His tone was casual, but his thoughts were far from it.
'What did she do to earn the bad side of two shadow organizations?'
'Now that I think about it… this explains why she didn't exist in the game.'
'She was just an extra. One that died before the story even started just like me.'
Crandall nodded. "Indeed, a great question."
Then—silence.
Alvin and Crandall stared at each other.
"...What?"
Crandall shrugged. "What's what?"
Alvin sighed. "Hah. So you don't know either."
Crandall rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "As I said, a great question."
Alvin's mind drifted into random thoughts when
Step… step…
Lesley approached, her steps slow and deliberate. Without a word, she pulled out a chair and sat down.
Alvin knew he should introduce them.
"Mr. Crandall, this is Lesley—our partner in crime."
Crandall nodded. "Nice to meet you, Lesley. I'm Crandall."
Lesley reached out for a handshake, about to introduce herself, when
She froze.
Her breath hitched.
Slowly, a few words slipped from her lips. "Late stage… Savant."
Alvin's eyes flickered with surprise.
He already knew Crandall was strong as he already noticed Crandell presence was completely undetectable. But late-stage Savant?
Even Exile said he was only mid-stage Savant.
Yet for some reason, Alvin could tell—Crandall couldn't be compared to Exile.
Exile was on another level.
Alvin recalled his words,
"Sigil progression is merely secondary to us."
'That explains a lot'
'But still… deploying a Savant just to hunt a late-stage Expert?'
'What the hell did my sister do?'