Chapter 1

University of WAR (1)

    Wars could happen every day, especially with oneself. Sometimes, humanity must marshal all its strength, stirring body and mind to battle the foe we had known since birth, nearly calling it a comrade.

    It became even harder when everything around us supported the opposing force, making it difficult for the young man who was tossing and turning in his bed to easily get up. The obstacles hindering human progress, ignored by all, were heavily assaulting him.

    Drowsiness...

    The dim light through his curtains allowed just enough light in, and that was a signal for the one battling with the sleep to fully awaken.

    Esther Devald rose, stretching lazily to shake off fatigue before dragging the opaque curtains open. The glaring sun, like an alarm clock, along with the village scenery, showed that people were living their normal lives without any malice. The sight included various vehicles, some with wheels, others floating in the sky, with the occasional person on a broom flying past.

    Advanced technology from research had rapidly changed society. Things in the world moved with psychic and magical powers. Electricity and oil, once the old world's staples, had become rare. Although records comparing the past and present showed how much better things were now.

    There remained one thing that made the young man, freshly awoken, wish to move his residence to the old world.

    Power...

    In this world, having psychic power was normal. By studying, one can learn more magic. This left Esther feeling quite alienated since he lacked any distinct power. While he could scrape by with magic, he had failed many tests. The only thing he had was physical strength, despite his scientist father insistence that his son had psychic powers.

    A sudden creak at his feet before a pile of books collapsed before him. Esther frowned slightly as he reached under the pillow to pull out the 48th book of the novel, the last in the series. He spent time arranging it neatly before shoving a stack of posters aside to find his bag.

    "Feels like I forgot something..." he muttered, yawning widely, "What was it...?"

    He glanced around to recall. He still woke up in the same white room as always. The room, made of modern materials resembling white plastic, was cluttered with books and documents. The writing desk that was turned into a temporary document shelf hadn't been cleaned for quite some time.

    Everything in the room was far more advanced than the old world he had read about… whether in shape or technology.

    Esther slowly moved to open his wardrobe. His 170 cm tall frame was muscular, with many scars hidden beneath. The reflection of a slothful state in the mirror was more like a street vagrant than a university student who was about to start a new semester.

    "...University..."

    His brain stalled at the word ‘university…’

    "I still have documents to submit..." Esther lazily moved to sort through the table's contents. "Schedule? ..."

    His gaze fell on a white paper he had just picked up, revealing characters and times that fully awakened the eyes of the night owl. His eyes glanced out the window at the bustling people before settling on a large wooden clock on the wall as the last thing he saw.

    "My... goddess."

    The schedule slipped from his hands, stating:

    Orientation at 9:00 AM

    The shorthand had already passed 8, while the longhand remained at 5.

    Ages of a long holiday had led to the neglect of setting an alarm, forgetting it completely.

    At that moment, humanity's great enemy, 'drowsiness,' was defeated.

    The two feet rushed into the bathroom, the left hand holding a toothbrush, the right hand holding a showerhead. The speed, as if a gun pointed at his forehead, resulted in Esther bursting out of the bathroom in just three minutes. He dressed in his usual attire of a shirt and jeans.

    His hands were full of a pile of documents that were being hastily stuffed into his bag. before the late bird dashed out the door -nearly slipping on a piece of paper that fell down unnoticeably.

    Packing 'everything' into a bag didn’t necessarily mean 'everything' was there.

    Esther ran to the bus stop in haste, and luckily, the bus arrived within minutes.

    A square, wheel-less white vehicle hovering slightly above the ground, extended stairs to invite him on board. However, when he looked up behind the door, he found an enormous crowd packed like sardines in a can which almost made him turn away. But Esther tried to manage to squeeze himself in anyway.

    "Safe..."

    He rested his head on his arm and let out a big sigh.

    Everything would have been a lot smoother if he hadn't left something important at home.

    The pitiful piece of paper that was nearly torn apart from being stepped on, that could change his life forever.

    After just 20 minutes, the young man started to see the high white wrought iron fence, a symbol of the university. The thick vines blocked any view inside, emanating an indescribable pressure. But that was not his concern because if he was late, this matter would not end easily.

    Once stepping off the bus, Esther dashed towards the gate without a care for his own life, but he had to come to a sudden stop when he encountered the muzzle of a raised light machine gun.

    "Stop..." The guard, dressed in a complete black bulletproof vest, said, " Please verify your identity. Otherwise, entry to the university zone is prohibited.”

    ‘Shit.’

    He swore inwardly. Despite the heat from the sun and the rush making Esther feel like he was cooked at every moment, he had to show his watch, which confirmed his identity. A hologram popped up, showing his picture and essential information, similar to an ID card, but there were only two important things now:

    ________________________

    Esther Devald : University of War student (Registration Incomplete)

    Major : ..... (Undeclared)

    ________________________

    Seeing the information, the guard's demeanor changed instantly. He lowered his gun, chuckled softly, and gestured inside.

    "Oh boy, everyone's almost done registering, and you just arrived. Hurry up before it closes."

    Esther was later than he thought.

    "The registration desk is in the second assembly building, on the first floor. It looks like a gym with a large brown roof. Turn left at the sign, and you'll find it after some minutes of walk. Don't wander too deep, there's no guarantee of safety beyond here. Getting shot would be unlucky."

    Relieved by the guard's words, indicating there's still time, though little, Esther nodded gratefully and immediately headed in the direction told, not noticing a large group of people exiting from the opposite side.

    The second assembly building was easy to find... it was one of the few buildings with a brown roof.

    The spacious interior, covered with large wooden planks without gaps, startled Esther with its emptiness, except for a large wooden table and a friendly-looking plump woman in black sitting with a stack of documents.

    Her pointed hat moved as she looked up at the last man who had just entered. The woman's face showed panic upon his arrival.

    "You're the very last one," she smiled, flipping her black cloak back. "You're just in time... Let's have your documents first."

    Esther sighed with relief before presenting his watch for identity verification and then handing over the assorted documents from his bag to the other party. She examined the stack of documents for a moment before nodding, her one hand summoning a slender wand that absorbed the information into oblivion.

    "All set then. Based on your exam, the university will assign a major for you since you didn't take a specific one. Let's take a walk around the university now," the woman, dressed like a witch, smiled at him. "You're the first in many years to enroll without choosing a major. Do you like taking risks?"

    "Wait... we could choose?" Esther blinked in surprise.

    He hadn't paid much attention to the study documents, only skimming through them.

    "Selection was open until the day before yesterday. First come, first served, and it could be done over the network. Except for the medical field, which required a declared major from the start," the plump professor explained as leading the way out of the assembly building, unaware of her follower's pale face.

    ‘Damn it, my goddess...’

    After a while, the woman who was leading stopped and turned to the young man, "And the dormitory consent form for the university accommodation?"

    "I submitted it just now... Here,"

    Esther responded, a sense of foreboding emerging as the woman shook her head.

    "What you submitted through your watch, yes, but the original copy is missing. The dormitory department needs it to prevent fraudulent data over the network. Of course, we also need parental consent. Without it, you can't stay in the dorm. Plus, according to the rules, every student at the University of War must reside within the university for fun...er, orderliness."

    ‘Damn it... I didn't choose a major, and I left the original documents at home.’

    "Can I go back and get it now?" Esther tried to look past the other party’s strange reply.

    “No, dear.”

    Hope crumbled like a collapsing mountain.

    “Registration time has ended. Even if you flew back, you wouldn’t make it in time.” Her tone suddenly became more formal, but Esther could tell she was somewhat amused. “Preparing documents is a basic responsibility of a student. We want everyone to understand this. Hope you do too."

    Esther Devald's lips pressed into a straight line. He wouldn't mind if this was an ordinary university, but it was the one his parents had him apply to...

    It was extraordinary from the name itself.

    "Let me add that at certain times, nearly every square meter here will be turned into a war zone. Although it's not as strict as a military camp, we don't have fixed rules like that. Even though it’s invisible, as soon as you enter the gate, you're under a protective magic network. Fights and crossfires are normal. It depends on how well you can survive. But don't worry, even if you're utterly annihilated, you'll wake up in the infirmary. Still, we don't recommend sleeping on campus grounds."

    His face paled as he absorbed more information from the other party. Esther was on the verge of tears; according to her, it was as if he was already dead. If getting hurt became a daily occurrence, he'd go mad before graduating.

    However, before he could protest, something interrupted him first.

    It was a bell rang.

    The plump woman raised an eyebrow and waved her wand in front of her, bringing up a stream of text that Esther couldn't comprehend.

    "The director's office has sent your information. You've been placed in the Combat and Tactics major,"

    She informed him with a smile… but he didn't smile in return.

    The Combat major was known as the most dangerous, where seeking death was a common reputation among them at the university. And of course, Esther had hoped for a more peaceful major like Quartermaster.

    "Oh... I forgot to mention, my name is Reina Seround. You can address me as either teacher or professor. I'm the head nurse here. Every student ends up meeting me at some point. And don't worry, no one's going to blame you for dying here."

    'Well, I will!'

    The name of this university was War.

    War University of Warfare.

    It came from the term ‘WAR’ in the language of the old world, which literally meant war. No one knew why the first director chose this name. Some said it was because it was located next to the War City, which had now become a part of the university's territory. Others argued the university was intended to teach about warfare from the beginning. Some believed it was named as a reminder of something. The funniest reason I'd ever heard was ‘because it sounds cool.’

    This place was a hub of various technologies and numerous hazardous zones beyond imagination, from a dense forest to a large bay near the university. Evidence suggested that every corner was filled with monsters that should not be provoked.

    The faculty, from the founding period to the present, were the ones who had crammed these creatures into the university.

    Only the university's front, the administrative building, and some parts of the city area were accessible from the outside world. Once stepping inside the fence, this place became an absolute forbidden zone. There were also rumors that this place was filled with vengeful spirits, as it was once a war zone, especially since the university initially didn't have the protective magic network mentioned by Nurse Reina Seround.

    A foolish person with bad luck was standing silently, thinking about the terrible things that were about to happen.

    'It must be Dying repeatedly as the professor mentioned...'

    Esther looked around at his surroundings, which would, from now on, become his new home. Multiple roads crisscrossed the university, connecting different buildings. High towers with connecting bridges seemed like secondary pathways. The university was surrounded by large forests and mountains. If one looked closely, you could also see the sea and large ponds in the distance.

    He swallowed nervously, thinking about the information he gathered before enrolling. The university's architecture spanned various eras and styles. Although they were divided into different zones for better planning, it seemed like the old system and traps that could kill him in seconds still existed. The mix of castles, tall buildings, and low-rise structures made Esther feel somewhat unwelcome.

    "And… what about the professors and other students?" The young man turned to ask the woman standing nearby.

    "They've all gone back to their work. Only I remain to fulfill my duties until the time out. As for the students, if they haven't gone to collect their belongings, they've returned to their dorms already--"

    Her words were abruptly cut off before the plump witch waved her wand in the air, conjuring an image of an elderly man with white hair and a stern face speaking something inaudible. The conversation caused the woman to glance back at Esther frequently, sending shivers down his spine.

    "The director wishes to speak with you..."

    Esther nodded slightly in acknowledgment as the image shifted closer, revealing the man in front of him more clearly. The man's silver wavy hair seemed to flutter as if there was a breeze blowing from below, and the director's smoothened face reminded him more of a corporate president than a professor.

    Loren Aegis, the director of the War University of Warfare.

    "Esther Devald," he smiled warmly. "Pleased to meet you... You must know who I am if you're studying here."

    'Yes, I know, sir. But I wish I didn't have to, sir. Just treat me like any other student who hasn't caused any trouble, please.'

    As if reading his mind, though the director's words were friendly, his gaze did not match the warmth. It seemed more like he was trying to press Esther down rather than engage in a casual conversation.

    "I won't waste much time... Let's get straight to the point," Loren sighed deeply. "Regarding your situation with forgetting the important documents for dormitory stay, actually, I planned to let you stay in the dorm like everyone else if your parents directly agreed. However, after consulting with the esteemed faculty, it has been decided that due to your carelessness and failure to follow updates..."

    At this moment, Esther felt an intense gaze – making his face numb.

    "I'll have you stay in a storage room... A special one we no longer use," the director's eyes gleamed with amusement. Esther, struggling to control his emotions, swallowed hard, knowing from experience that 'special’ never indicated anything good in his life.

    "And as a lesson," the elderly man continued, oblivious to Esther's distress, "I'm revoking your right to participate in the university's weapon selection ceremony."

    'Damn it.'

    Esther clenched his jaw as misfortune greeted him face to face.

The Weapon Selection Ceremony was conducted on the opening day of the term, allowing students to input their data into a modified magical device. The device then assigned a weapon suited to its owner. If a suitable weapon was already possessed, nothing would happen. The array of weapons spanned from simple, minor ones to tools for creating weapons, and even anti-aircraft equipment. There were rumors that some had even obtained rare relics from the ancient warriors in the Archaic War, which were incredibly hard to come by. Initially, Esther had no personal weapon; his possessions were all books, making him highly interested in this ceremony.