A year ago in Seal Academy.

At orientation, a well-dressed man was standing in front of everyone. His looks were dashing and the air around him made it seem as if he was superior to everyone around him. He had a set of knives lined up on his waist, some of which were still stained with dried blood.

A young girl was at the front, paying close attention to him. She clenched her fists, building up her courage to face the future with her convictions.

“I’m the current Head of the school, you can call me Viener. I lead this academy’s strongest force, King’s Valley.” He spoke casually yet the amount of bloodthirst he gave out pressured everyone that had just attended. Other than a few students who resisted, everyone else could barely breathe.

“Weak… This is a pathetic batch. Dean Alabaster, why’d you even bother starting another school year with these clowns? Other than a few promising ones, everyone else is laughable.” Viener covered his mouth with a gloved hand and mocked them. The disgust written on his face was extremely offensive.

Dean Alabaster didn’t seem offended despite having Viener act like that. “Because I believe someone that, if nurtured right, could surpass and stand above everyone else. A possible Labyrinth Solver in the making.”

“Labyrinth Solver? Hah! Don’t make me laugh. I’m already set for it.” Viener had full confidence in being one of the greatest Labyrinth Solver of the City of Sin. His achievements so far had completely outshone every single talent in Seal Academy, he was the current greatest prodigy that it had created.

Be it brawn or wits, his talent wasn’t something to be looked down upon. Being at the very top of Seal Academy meant that he was unquestionably the strongest student there. As for his Rating, it had an absurd value of 298, well above most of the students. Although there were a few oddballs that reached a higher score than him, he was genuinely someone who deserved his place.

“So are you willing to bet your title of being the Head of the King’s Valley?” Dean Alabaster’s expression remained the same the entire time.

“No student in this entire school could put me down. Let’s see what you have gotten ready.” Viener’s eyes turned vicious as his bloodlust caused those weaker students to bleed from their orifices. Even those previously unaffected students started to suffer.

Unnatural gurgling sounds came out of multiple students’ mouths. They were suffering such immense pressure for the first time in their life. It was clear that they were suffocating from their own blood.

A white-haired girl saw her seatmates start to bleed and tried to help them out. Her distressed look as she helplessly looked on as everyone suffered made her look pitiful.

“H-Hey, are you alright? We need to stop the… everyone’s bleeding…” Fiona drastically looked around and saw that everyone except her was suffering gruesomely. Pinpointing the source problem, Fiona immediately rushed up the stage.

“Viener, Stop it! You’re hurting them!” Fiona raised her voice. She couldn’t just let them suffer needlessly. “You’ve made your point, please stop.”

Viener’s aura didn’t rescind at all. “This girl? Really? What makes her so special? Did she manage to gain the approval of a Fragment? Or does she have some special background? Which is it?”

“Viener, meet Fiona Pierre. The girl I believe has no equal be it wit or brawn. Through a special recommendation, she’s attending the academy to try and see if she could change its ways. You shouldn’t look down on her, she’s already beyond you.”

“Beyond me? What are you talking about, Dean Alabaster?” Viener started to take Fiona a bit more seriously.

“She took a Rating Examination and achieved a Rating of 563, an entire hundred points higher than the second placer in our academy. Without a doubt, she has a mind that’s very valuable. However, that’s not the only thing. She’s extremely skilled in combat.”

“This little pipsqueak? Stronger than me?” Viener took out a rusted knife from his waist and stared at Fiona with a menacing glint in his eyes. He sadistically looked at her, already seeing her body be riddled with countless holes.

“As much as I would like to see my students fight against one another, the etiquette of ceremony is still at hand.” Dean Alabaster already knew that Viener’s ego had been stroked and would like nothing more than to show that he was still the strongest person here. “Though, it’s not as if I wouldn’t allow it. Are you willing to risk your status as the Head of King’s Valley?”

Viener knew that Dean Alabaster was extremely biased towards this little girl but it's not as if he was going to back down like this. “So be it. “

“Sir Viener, please stop hurting them.” Fiona bowed, hoping that Viener would find her pleas reasonable.

“You want it to end? Hah, then make me.” Viener held a knife in his hands and threw it towards Fiona’s leg, aiming to cripple her movements before playing with her.

As his eyes were glued on to her, for some reason, the knife that was moving at an unprecedented speed was immediately blocked by some unforeseen force.

Fiona bit her lip and sighed, “I don’t like resulting to force. I would like to finish this through a conversation if possible.” She glanced at the students who were trying their best to retain their consciousness as the overbearing aura crushed their ability to do anything. “Please.”

“Words won’t make me do anything. Show me why Dean Alabaster is so determined to prop you up high.” Viener took out another knife, this one was a little less rusted than the other. He put a little more strength into it and started to cause an audible noise as it was sent through the air.

Fiona looked up and saw such a dangerous object coming right at her. Viener’s knife which shouldn’t be seen by the naked eye was so easily seen through by Fiona. She reached out her hand and grabbed the handle. She did so with such ease that this was the kind of action one would use as they grabbed apples from a tree.

“They’re needlessly suffering. Sir Viener, I’m asking you one last time, I don’t think they can handle this anymore.” Fiona looked at one of her seatmates. His face had two streams going down it, it looked as if he was crying blood. She couldn’t delay this any longer.

The audience could still somewhat understand what was going on. They all rooted for Fiona to stop Viener from making them suffer.

Viener saw that Fiona was genuinely something that could possibly pose a threat to him. He started to take it seriously. “My Combat Technique is called the Sea of Knives. That’s all you’re getting from me.”

Fiona felt Viener’s aura start to change as his previously thick and dense aura turned into something sharper. It felt as if there were numerous pins trying to pierce through her skin. Although it wasn’t that sharp for her, being rather numb, another person would already be feeling their skin be torn away from their bodies.

Fiona sighed, “I cannot let them be in such agony any longer. I’m sorry in advance.” Fiona’s naive and innocent appearance turned into one that had been blessed by the gods, a completely holy aura. “My Combat Technique is called The Pure Maiden. I haven’t mastered it completely so this will hurt a lot.”

Viener could feel such an overwhelming appearance appear before him. His bloodthirsty aura was immediately purified all around him. It was as if his sins were being cleansed. He could see that there was a hint of something extremely terrifying behind it.

This was something that caught Viener completely off-guard, never before had he seen such a phenomenon. “Malum! You can use Malum without a Fragment?!”

Fiona’s previously pained and panicked expression turned calm. It was as if there was nothing wrong with the world at all. She expressionlessly walked towards him with a single thought in mind. “Cleanse the impure.”

Such void emotions drastically shifted her aura. From one of hope and distress, it had turned into cold, calculative devotion.

“Dammit, you cannot be serious! I’m completely outclassed here! Dean Alabaster, I’m going to use my own Fragment-” Viener was holding onto a coin when he was immediately interrupted.

“I do not allow it.” Dean Alabaster intruded. “Fiona’s not using a Fragment and by Seal Academy’s rules, you can only use your Fragment to control Malum if the other party is also using one. You can try breaking the rules before me and see how that goes.”

“This is unfair!” Viener wanted nothing more than to fight on equal grounds yet he had been played. The sheer concept of being able to use the core power inside this blasted maze without using a Fragment was beyond him. This ability to use Malum without having to deal with a Fragment was unbelievable. His expectations were completely shattered.

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Fiona didn’t seem as if she was in control at all as she bravely faced the dangers coming at her. Viener gritted his teeth and threw another knife at her, this had a slight shine towards it. This was one of the sharper ones he had on him, he needed to know to what degree Fiona had control.

As soon as his accurately aimed attack bounced off her, he knew that there was no way he would be able to breach her defenses. The difference between using Malum and not using Malum was the same as having an armed and unarmed army facing each other. The results were clear. Although it wasn’t completely invincible, on a one-on-one, it was nigh impossible to win against someone using Malum.

“I can’t unleash the full potential of my Combat Technique if I can’t use Malum! You knew this and planned it ahead of time. You’re sly, really sly. I guess that’s what I get for having my guard down.” Viener could already foresee his defeat.

“I’m just playing along with the academy’s rules. Unfortunately, the rules cannot contain true monsters and instead, shape them to their benefit. There is no need for this to go on any longer, will you give up your status and organization?’

Viener clenched his fists and shook his head, “Not without a fight.” He no longer exuded his bloodlust and decided to completely focus on himself. He was about to fight against someone that he could not defeat yet the concept of backing down wasn’t in his mind.

It was a stupid ploy to throw him under the bus. Viener’s pride couldn’t just let that happen for nothing. He had built up far too much just to lose it all now.

He held two knives in his hands, prepared to fight against what was to come.

If I could use Malum then I’ll be able to form a stream of knives with it, overbearing the opponent with seamless attacks. Too bad I’ll only be able to apply the concept with my bare hands.

Viener held both of his knives in a reverse grip. His fighting style was as each attack was set in motion, there would be another one that would find the gap in the opponent’s defense. This was a type of fighting style that overwhelmed those weaker than him and gave him an edge against those similarly skilled.

Viener still held onto his pride and faced against an unknown opponent. With Fiona’s casual stance, he took advantage of this and dashed in, aiming to rip her guts apart. His speed was even faster than the knives he had thrown earlier. Only using his physical body to attain such speeds truly made one understand just how much of a monster he was.

To his dismay, his knives were halted a few inches from Fiona’s body, preventing him from even piercing through her defenses. “Tch, what about this?” Viener grabbed one of the most pristine knives on his waist, this one had an extremely terrifying glint on it. This knife was made out of an extremely precious material that was harder than most common metals.

Finally, Fiona reacted. The sheer toughness of the knife was enough to get through her defenses and pierce through her skin. Sensing such danger coming at her, Fiona didn’t dodge it. She reached out her hand and caught Viener’s arm, immediately twisting it.

Viener howled in pain of having his bone broken in such an odd way. Even still, his grip on his knife didn’t weaken at all, an instinct that he had forged through getting past tons of trials. There were numerous times in his life where if he had let go of his weapon then he would’ve without a doubt died.

He still retained his senses and chose the appropriate course of action, retaliating with even greater force. With Fiona’s hand gripping his arm, he chose to sacrifice his arm to launch a direct attack on her. He twisted his body to position himself in a way that his next attack would land on her blind side.

With such a motion, his already broken arm was exaggeratedly twisted even further, almost tearing away from him. Even with such an outcome, Viener continued on with his desperate attacks. This was already a lost fight ever since it began, landing one attack was more than enough for him to keep his pride.

Unfortunately for him, Fiona reacted accordingly. Using her insanely quick reaction time, she grabbed ahold of Viener’s other arm, immobilizing it in place. Once again, his other arm had been broken. Viener knew this would happen, after all, it was expected of her to do so.

Viener leaned back and tried to deliver a headbutt, trying to distract Fiona long enough for him to create a miracle. Unexpectedly, it worked. Fiona hadn’t expected Viener to do something as stupid as that, letting him use his forehead and land a clean hit on the bridge of her nose.

For some reason, the barrier that Viener had expected to be there wasn’t. Letting him realize that she wasn’t as omnipotent as she looked. Nearly impossible to beat but there was a slight chance.

Fiona naively let go and touched her face, feeling the stinging pain. This was one of the few times that she had felt pain. A feeling that she disliked, one that she hoped that no one would ever feel.

Viener grinned, he raised his twisted arm and let go of his weapon. He opened his mouth and bit it in place. Using the rest of his body in this one last attack, he jumped at her, aiming at her neck with this one last attempt.

Fiona quickly managed to get over the pain. Seeing that Viener was on his last legs, she winded up an attack of her own, compressing most of her power towards this point. There was nothing else left for Viener to do but take this head on.

A terrifying amount, if she launched it then Viener’s head would be blown clean off. Dean Alabaster accurately pinpointed the future if this happened.

From Dean Alabaster’s view, if Fiona killed someone then it would only work in his favor. He had no intention in intervening at all. Although a talent like Viener would be lost, what he would gain would be just far too much. It was a price that he wasn’t paying, it was the best kind.

As Fiona was about to strike Viener down, she bit her lips so hard that a stream of blood poured down. Her calm demeanor immediately changed back to that of her earlier one. A face that was extremely concerned towards other people.

She nearly committed something that she would dearly regret. She came back to her senses just in time to just barely redirect her attack elsewhere. The only problem here was that if she redirected her attack then Viener would no doubt strike her, leaving her at his mercy.

“I have no regrets.” Fiona changed the direction of her punch upwards, letting Viener pass by without any issue. With such an opportunity at hand, Viener was about to grab ahold of victory when a certain person intervened.

They were both caught up in some sort of force foreign to them, bringing them apart. “Viener, you already lost. There was no point in continuing.”

Viener knew that Dean Alabaster intervened just because he didn’t want Fiona to receive injuries. He wanted to vent his frustrations but recalling the fact that Fiona intentionally stopped her own attack so that he would no longer suffer, he decided to let it be.

“Too soft. Tch.” Viener couldn’t believe that such an idiot existed. She was willing to risk her life so that he didn’t die. “You’re going to die early.” Saying so, Viener dragged his weak body outside the assembly hall.

Everyone regained their ability to breathe as the bloodied assembly hall was no longer a cacophony of groans and cries.

As for Fiona, seeing that it finally ended, immediately went after Viener. “I’ll help you.” Even though the battle ended in a way that nearly killed both of them, she still prioritized her opponent’s well being.

“What are you doing? Humiliating me even more?! Go away! You wanted it right? Just take it!” Viener screamed out, he didn’t like the fact that Fiona was rubbing it in. It was already destined for him to be humiliated but there was no reason for Fiona to make it even worse.

“I… I’m going to still help you. I hope you can at least let me accompany you to the clinic…” Fiona was determined to go through with this. She didn’t like the fact that she was the person who made him like this.

“Help me? Hahaha! Stop pretending to be nice! What about everyone else? Aren’t those students still bleeding? Why aren’t you helping them right now?” Viener was showcasing Fiona’s hypocrisy. Such naive thoughts would be her undoing at this rate.

“Their lives aren’t in danger… but yours is. I’m just selfish and don’t want any blood on my hands…” Fiona mocked herself. “I don’t want anyone to die.”

If she truly did want to help them then using brute strength was the clear method. Her foolish idea of using words only prolonged their pain.

Viener couldn’t help but get even angrier at her mindset. It was completely optimistic in such a nihilistic world. What made him even angrier was the fact that despite speaking about such things, she participated in screwing him over. Her actions and ideas aren’t lining up.

“Says the hypocrite who almost killed me. What? You want me to forgive you? Not happening. You should’ve just killed me and gone along with his plan.” Viener was bearing the pain of dragging his body to the clinic.

“I didn’t know about it… I’m sorry. I’ll just give it back-” Fiona was trying to make things right.

“Hahahaha!” Viener was clenching his teeth and stared daggers at her. “Just give it back? You have no idea how the world works at all, do you? Tch, keep it, I’ll come back for it in the future. You’re only a year below me after all…”

“Even if you insult me, I’ll still try to do what I think is right.” Fiona immediately went over to him and used her Combat Technique. The same calm expression returned to her face. “I’ll… make it hurt less.”

Fiona hovered over Viener’s arms. She touched his twisted and mangled arms. She had a pained look in her eyes yet despite that, she still pushed on with whatever she was going to do.

“What are you…” Viener expected there to be unbelievable pain due to all the nerves in his arms being highly sensitive but there wasn’t any. Instead, there was a soothing feeling that slowly helped mend his arms back together.

“You can do that?” Viener saw his arms return to how they were initially. He was genuinely surprised that a person like her could do something like this. Typically, such a supportive aspect of a Combat Technique was extremely valuable yet hard to master at the same time.

As Viener was no longer feeling his arms sting, he spoke some words to her, “At the very least you made it… what’s wrong with you?”

Fiona’s arms were shaking as she was starting to hyperventilate. Closing her eyes, a few tear droplets started to go down her face. “I-I… fi… fine. Gah… hah… hah…” Her face contorted in pain as she tried to keep a straight face. Seeing her try to make it seem as if she wasn’t suffering made it even worse for him.

Even Viener wasn’t heartless enough to just let someone who went out of their way to do that for him be left alone like that. He turned extremely mad at himself, not for going out of his way to help her but for him to start believing in such a fool. “What the hell is wrong with me?!”

Viener barely touched Fiona’s arm but she shieked in pain. The pure agony she was in showed that she was completely unfamiliar with this feeling. This was the same unbearable sensation that he just went through.

Seeing her bawl her eyes out like a completely defenseless girl, Viener gritted his teeth and did the only thing that he could do for her. He used his hands and knocked her out. At the very least, she wouldn’t feel the pain anymore. He quickly sent her to the clinic, letting her rest alone in peace.

Viener went outside and closed the door. He leaned back on it and slid down, contemplating on many things. “King’s Valley, the strongest organization in Seal Academy, don’t turn it into a joke.” After saying his piece, he took an advanced examination and graduated from Seal Academy.

Oddly enough, no one managed to pinpoint where he ended up. This was until someone came from beyond The Boundary. As it turned out, Viener had been pushing through in the most dangerous area humanity knew. He was fighting on the front lines.