Chapter 15 The World Turn Upside Down

Instructor's gaze swept over the room one last time, the ghost of the Witch Queen still lingering in the tense silence.

"Tomorrow. 0700. Main gates. Not 0701. Not when you feel like it. You will be in your assigned teams. You will have your gear. You will have your heads on straight. You will see things tomorrow that will test you. You will be afraid. But you will do your jobs. You are the next line. The only line between that thing and the civilians behind us. The Witch Queen isn't coming back to save us. It's on us now. So, get your shit in order. Get some sleep if you can. Because tomorrow... we go to work. Dismissed!"

----------------

The classroom had mostly emptied, the weight of the upcoming mission sending students off to prepare or panic in their own ways. As Shota, Mirai, and Enji gathered their things, Instructor approached.

"Osanai. A moment."

 "Yes, Instructor~?"

"Your father... Tomorrow is a big day. Is Kenji doing alright?"

 "Oh, I wouldn't know. I haven't really seen him since he took over the title. You know, after she died. When they decided he should be the new 'Witch King.' But hey, even before that, all he did was chase after her. Always talking about how great it would be to be Number One."

 She let out a tiny, hollow laugh. 

"Now he is. He's always at his agency. He even lives there now. No minute for a personal life. Nothing. Mom got tired of waiting. She found some simple guy who actually had time for her. So, yeah. I have no idea if he's ready. But hey — he’s the number one these past ten years, right? If anyone can pull it off tomorrow, it’s him. The great Grand Archmage Kenji Osanai, the Witch King. My old man got this."

With that, she turned, linking her arm with Shota and shot a glance at Enji.

 "Come on, team! We have a big, scary day tomorrow! We should go get some ice cream to prepare!"

She skipped out, leaving Instructor in the silent classroom, the echo of her words painting a far lonelier and more complicated picture of the Japan's strongest wizard than any official report ever could.

----------------

The main gates of academy. Morning.

Academy students stood in their assigned trios, uniforms crisp, faces pale.

Instructor Arata moved down the lines.

"Check your gear. Check your partner's gear. Now is the time. We are moving out!"

Team after team was loaded into armored transports. When he reached Shota, Mirai, and Enji, his gaze lingered for a fraction of a second longer.

"Osanai. You're the senior mage of this team. You're in charge. Keep them focused. Ultra Extra, your job is to be the unbreakable rock. Nothing gets through you. Heatburst... direct your fire. The enemy isn't in front of you today. It's whatever tries to slip past."

Enji grunted. Mirai simply smiled. 

"Don't worry, Instructor. My team is in very good hands."

Shota just nodded, his eyes already looking at the distance.

They disembarked in a secured sector of Ota City, right at the barrier's edge. The translucent golden wall curved away on either side, and beyond it... was a warzone.

Ten kilometers away, across the waters of Tokyo Bay, the world was ending.

The sky was bruised with unnatural magics. Colossal ice spears the size of skyscrapers hurtled through the air, only to be swatted aside by a mountainous, reptilian limb. Blasts of pure energy, visible as rippling waves of heat and light, slammed into the Kaiju's scales. They could see the tiny, brilliant specks of the Top 5—the Witch King a blazing star of concentrated power—swarming around the behemoth like gnats around a titan. The sound was a delayed, rolling thunder that shook the very ground beneath their feet.

 Instructor Arata's voice cracked over the comms. 

"The top 5 have engaged the target! The battle has begun! Eyes on the perimeter! But this fight is not for you! Watch for fragments! Watch for spawn!"

Mirai stood between Shota and Enji, her playful demeanor gone. Enji's hands were clenched, small flames licking between his fingers, his body trembling with the desire to be out there, in the big fight.

"We should be out there... not chasing these pests..."

Shota just stared. The cataclysm before him was immense, terrifying. But his mind, treacherously, superimposed another image over it. A gentle woman in a dress of black flame, tilting her head. Then, a whisper in his mind.

"Ara, ma... an SS-tier. Did Pochi come to play? What a nuisance."

The real battle was miles away. But their battle was just beginning. A shower of dark, screeching shapes, no larger than wolves, broke away from the Kaiju's body, moving with terrifying speed straight towards the barrier.

Straight towards alpha team.

"Incoming! All teams, engage! This is it!"

They were speeding past an abandoned multi-story parking lot.

Instructor Arata was on the comms.

 "This is team 4! We are moving toward alpha team! Report your position—"

BOOOOOOOOOOOM!

It happened in a split second.

There was no warning. No build-up of energy. Just a silent, concentrated sphere of absolute darkness that shot from the shadows of the parking lot's third floor.

The side of the armored transport ceased to exist, vaporized. The concussive aftermath of that void hit them a microsecond later, a physical shockwave that lifted the multi-ton vehicle and hurled it like a toy.

Time seemed to stretch. Shota saw the world turn upside down. He saw the look of stunned disbelief on Instructor's face. He saw Mirai's eyes widen, not with fear, but with a shocking, ecstatic realization.

Then, the world dissolved into a deafening roar of screeching metal and shattering concrete as the transport tore through the wall of a nearby building and everything went black.

------------------

Consciousness returned to Shota in a wave of pain and disorientation. The world was a haze of dust and the smell of burning blood. A voice cut through the ringing in his ears, sharp and urgent.

"Everyone out of the vehicle! Drivers are dead! Heatburst, grab Ultra Extra and get him out! Miss R.R., you're with me!"

It was Instructor Arata. He was hauling himself through the hole where the transport's side used to be, his split lip bleeding.

Enji, already on his feet despite a cut on his forehead, snarled but obeyed. He grabbed Shota's arm and roughly yanked him from the wreckage. Mirai was already outside, her hands on the ground.

 "Rock Wall!" she shouted, and a thick barrier of earth erupted around them, shielding them from the direction of the parking lot.

Shota stumbled, his head spinning, but righted himself.

 "I'm fine. Just got knocked out for a second. No injuries." 

 "Good. Miss R.R, maintain the wall. We need to—"

KAAAAAAAAA-BOOOOM!

The rock wall in front of them explode, disintegrated into a cloud of fine dust as if it had never existed.

Where it had stood, four dark figures now loomed. The Ancient Shadows had arrived.

The one in the center took a step forward, its voice a symphony of grinding stone and static that echoed in their souls.

"The diversion our leader has orchestrated was a success. The pro wizards are occupied. And yet, we still find wizards in our path. A persistent infestation. This will hinder the Man's plan. But no matter. We will simply erase this complication. Quickly."

Instructor Arata’s blood ran cold. 

"Ancient Shadows?! Now? Of all the times!? And four of them! They're B-tier, at least. I can take one, but not all four at once! Mirai, Enji, and Shota have gotten stronger, but they can't go one-on-one with these things. We need a plan, and we need it five seconds ago!"

He covered his mouth with his hand while whispering over the private team comms.

"Listen close, I'll be quick. Ultra Extra, you're the anchor. You pull their aggro. Your barrier is the only thing that can take their hits. Just stand your ground and be a target. That's your whole thing, right?"

He didn't wait for a response, his eyes darting between Mirai and Enji.

"The rest of us split up. Different locations. We don't need to beat them, we need to split them up. I can't fight them all at once. Draw their attention. Make it a one-on-one fight. Stall them. Survive. When I finish the first one, I'll help the next."