A knock echoed from the door of the meeting room.

"Come in," Valis called, her gaze shifting to the door.

"Excuse me," Celes said as she entered the room.

Liana's face brightened at the sight of her. "Celes! Come sit next to me."

Celes nodded and made her way to the seat beside Liana.

"Where have you been?" Liana asked with a worried tone.

Celes’s eyes briefly flickered to Barran before she answered, "I... had something to do with the other students."

Ren, still hidden with his Unexistence skill, noticed her subtle glance. "Looks like Barran ordered her to do something. Probably an agency task," he murmured under his breath.

"Oh, I see." Liana sighed in relief. "We were worried about you."

"Don’t worry. Nothing serious happened," Celes reassured her, offering a small smile.

"Well, now that everyone is here, let's move on to the final topic," Valis announced firmly, shifting the mood in the room. "Barran, can you bring the items?"

"Of course, Principal," Barran replied as he stood and walked over to a nearby cabinet.

He retrieved two items from it—one of them immediately catching Ren's attention. Barran placed them on the table: a broken blue amulet and a swirling black orb. Ren's heart skipped a beat as he recognized the latter.

“Oh, my precious! There you are,” Ren said excitedly, seeing the familiar Origin Metal.

“As you can see, these are the items we recovered during the battle with the beast,” Valis said to the group, gesturing toward the objects.

The once-glowing amulet now appeared dull, with a small crack running along its surface.

“The amulet... is it broken?” Rolan asked, leaning forward in curiosity.

“It seems so. I can't feel any aura coming from it,” Lucius said, a note of disappointment in his voice.

“Yeah, me neither. It's such a shame to lose a powerful artifact like this,” Liana added, equally disheartened.

“Did we push it too far?” Shiro asked, frowning.

“Possibly, but we'll never know for sure,” Lucius replied.

The group sat in disappointment, staring at the remnants of the once-valuable amulet they had obtained after surviving the grueling dungeon. Ren, still unnoticed in the corner, sighed quietly. He had known it was a one-time artifact, and deep down, he had hoped that maybe the rules of the game wouldn't apply in this world. But reality had proved him wrong.

Valis sighed too but offered a reassuring smile. “It’s fine. The amulet did its job—it helped us win. That’s what matters.”

The group nodded in agreement, but their eyes soon drifted to the second item on the table. Even Valis and Barran seemed mesmerized by it—the Origin Metal, shifting subtly as though it were alive.

“What... what is this, Vice Principal Barran?” Liana asked, her gaze fixed on the swirling orb.

“We’re not entirely sure,” Barran replied. “We found it at the site where the beast's body disintegrated.”

Valis, however, had her own theory. “I believe this is the weapon that dealt the final blow.”

Everyone’s eyes widened as they turned to Valis.

“Y-You mean this is the weapon the mysterious man used to kill the beast, Principal?” Shiro asked, his voice filled with shock.

“I believe so. When the mysterious man unleashed that unknown technique, I caught a glimpse of something—something flying at the beast at incredible speed,” Valis explained confidently.

“I didn’t see anything,” Celes admitted, trying to mask her amazement. “When I heard the explosion, the next thing I saw was the beast collapse.”

“Me neither,” Liana added, still in shock.

“But how could a metal orb kill something that massive?” Rolan asked, his curiosity piqued as he leaned in to inspect it more closely.

“You idiot, that’s clearly not just any metal orb,” Lucius remarked, rolling his eyes.

“Of course I know that! Look at it—it’s moving like it’s alive,” Rolan shot back.

Barran interjected, “We have reports from teachers and students who were on the rooftop when it happened. According to them, the mysterious man wielded a massive greatsword with his mind, used a strange technique, and unleashed it with what looked like pure mana.”

Lucius was stunned. “Ha ha, that... that can’t be true, right?”

Valis nodded gravely. “The reports were consistent across dozens of witnesses. They all saw the same thing.”

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The room fell into stunned silence once more. Even Barran seemed lost in thought, even though he had read the reports.

But Shiro remained quiet, his attention focused elsewhere. His expression shifted as he thought through the details, and then, with a serious tone, he asked, “Principal Valis, may I ask a question?”

Valis raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised by his tone. “Of course. What’s on your mind?”

“The mysterious man... is he the same person who gave you the hint about the dungeon beneath the academy?” Shiro asked bluntly.

The others were taken aback by the question, but the moment he brought it up, they, too, remembered that crucial piece of information.

“Oh yeah, the supposed ghost Principal Valis mentioned before the battle,” Rolan said as he finally remembered.

Valis, knowing there was no point in lying, decided to tell the truth. “Yes, it was the very same man. He was the one who gave me the hint.”

The group and Barran were stunned by Valis' words, but now everything made sense.

“This individual possesses knowledge no one else had, wields a peculiar weapon, and has the power to completely destroy the beast in a single attack,” Barran said bluntly, laying out the facts.

It was absurd—no one should have that much power. The sheer strength alone was a security threat, but combined with his mysterious knowledge, the man became even more dangerous.

That’s why it was so baffling. Why had this mysterious man saved them? What was his purpose? Did he have some hidden motive? Did he want something from the academy?

But the question on everyone’s mind was simple: Is he an enemy or a friend?

“I’m not your enemy if that’s what you’re thinking,” a sudden, unfamiliar voice echoed through the meeting room.

Valis, Barran, Shiro, and the others were instantly shocked, their troubled thoughts shoved aside as they all turned to the source of the voice.

There he was—the elusive man who had saved them all. The figure everyone in the academy had been talking about.

Celes and Barran instinctively moved to stand in a defensive stance, but Valis quickly interrupted.

“Wait! Put down your weapons,” Valis shouted, warning both Celes and Barran.

They hesitated but trusted Valis enough to relent. Shiro, Rolan, Lucius, and Liana remained on edge, their eyes locked onto Ren, stunned.

Especially Shiro.

Finally, the two of them met—the man who didn’t belong in this world, and the second protagonist of this world storyline.

“You...” Valis said cautiously. “Why are you here?”

“To congratulate all of you for surviving the invasion,” Ren replied with an eerie calmness. “Oh, and to retrieve something of mine.”

Ren extended his hand toward the desk. The Origin Metal, sensing Ren, began to move, swirling in a liquid state toward him. Everyone watched in shock as the metal coiled around Ren’s body, reforming into his robe, fitting him perfectly.

As he glanced at them once more, he added, “But I’m also not your friend.”

Surprisingly, it was Shiro who responded. “Then why did you save us? And why give Principal Valis the hint about the dungeon?”

Ren met Shiro’s gaze, his expression calm and cryptic. “Because it was necessary.”

“Necessary for what?” Rolan asked cautiously.

Ren smirked slightly before answering, “For everything that is yet to come.”

The group stared at him, confused by his cryptic words, but Ren knew he couldn’t just reveal everything about the world or his identity. Besides, he was enjoying playing the mysterious role.

“I feel like one of those clue-givers in games who always say cryptic things,” Ren thought, amused by his own performance.

“Then tell us—how do you know about the dungeon beneath the academy?” Barran asked, his guard still up.

“I’ve been there before, so I know what’s inside,” Ren said truthfully.

Technically, he wasn’t lying—he had been there before when he played the game. But to everyone else, it sounded as though Ren was claiming he had been there long before the dungeon collapsed underground.

“W-What!? Then how old is he?” Rolan thought, his mind racing.

“I thought he was just a few years older than us,” Lucius pondered.

“Could it be… from before the Dark Ages?” Celes wondered, her eyes widening in disbelief.

“That’s impossible... the first time that dungeon was opened was when Shiro’s group entered it,” Barran said confidently.

“Of course there won’t be any evidence,” Ren replied, his voice steady.

Barran was taken aback by the response. Ren’s answer could mean two things in his mind.

Either Ren knew about the dungeon because he was there when it fell underground, or he somehow managed to enter without anyone noticing.

Two theories that were incredibly wrong. The truth was far stranger than Barran or anyone else could imagine.

Knowing he didn’t have much time left, Ren looked directly at Shiro. “You will meet me in the capital,” Ren said. “If you and your class want to get stronger, I’ll show you a path.”

The group was confused but intrigued. Sensing their hesitation, Ren decided to give Shiro one last piece of persuasive information. “If you come to the capital, I’ll teach you how to control that hidden power of yours.”

Shiro’s eyes widened in shock. He wasn’t expecting Ren to know about that. Before anyone could react, the timer ran out, and Ren vanished into thin air, leaving the room in stunned silence.

Ren then left the room to let them discuss things among themselves.

“Well, that went better than I thought,” he sighed in relief. He glanced at his robe, a smile tugging at his lips as he felt the familiar presence of the Origin Metal.

“Welcome back,” Ren said, and the metal vibrated slightly, as if replying.

As he walked away from the meeting room, his thoughts drifted back to Class F and the recent battle. They had won, and none of the major characters from the game had been seriously hurt. In that sense, things had gone well. But one nagging thought gnawed at Ren.

During the dungeon fight, something had felt off. At first, Ren assumed the bosses’ difficulty had increased since the game had become real, but that explanation didn’t quite fit. When he watched the battle between the class and the beast, he felt it again—that strange sense that something wasn’t right.

“They’re still prodigies, that much I’m sure of,” Ren murmured to himself. “But it almost seems like they’re underleveled.”

In games, characters could have the background of prodigies or masters, but in gameplay terms, it didn’t mean much. If a character was underleveled compared to an opponent, they would lose, regardless of their reputation or skill. That’s what it felt like now—as if Shiro and his classmates hadn’t spent enough time gaining experience, leaving them underprepared for the challenges they faced.

“Maybe that’s where the story diverged,” Ren pondered. In the game, players could grind for experience, ensuring characters were always strong enough for the next battle. But this world wasn’t a game. There were no players controlling Shiro or his friends. They were just following the storyline, without the benefit of extra training.

“In this world, there’s no such thing as grinding for experience,” Ren murmured. “They’re just living their lives.”

The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. In the game, players would train, farm for better gear, and prepare for tougher battles. But in this world, the characters simply moved forward, unprepared for the increasing threats. Ren realized what they needed—they had to grind for experience, and fast.

That’s why he told them to meet him in the capital.

An idea had sparked in his mind earlier, just before he appeared in front of the group. The capital. If they were heading there next week, there is a perfect place nearby that could serve as a training ground. A place where they could farm experience and properly gear up for what lay ahead. It would be risky, but it could make all the difference.

“If they survive it, which I hope they do,” Ren muttered, recalling his own past experiences in that place.

But for now, he would let them rest. They had earned it.