The Author's POV

Minutes before the explosion, outside of the dome.

"Jin, you're here."

Kevin approached Jin.

Looking left and right, he asked.

"Have perhaps you seen Ren anywhere?"

Staring at the large translucent barrier covering the dome, Jin shook his head.

"No."

"Strange..." Kevin murmured. "I thought he'd be here already since he left earlier than me."

Having left before him, Kevin assumed that Ren had already left the dome.

'Perhaps he's already left the area?'

Though Plausible, Kevin shook his head.

Even if he chose to go back, he wouldn't have gotten far. Especially since Ren only left a minute before him.

Most likely, he was still roaming around here somewhere or was with a professor.

"Hey, you two! Help out over here!"

"..uh?"

Snapping Kevin out of his thoughts was a rough voice. Turning his head, Kevin spotted a professor in the distance.

With one hand touching the blue barrier, using his right hand, the professor motioned him and Jin to go to him.

Kevin immediately rushed to the professor. Jin silently followed from behind.

"How may I help you?"

"How is your mana reserve?"

The professor asked.

"Half."

"Good...you?"

The professor turned his attention to Jin.

Squinting his eyes for a second, Jin eventually responded.

"...About the same."

"Hm, that's perfect, I need you both to channel your mana inside of the barrier."

"Channel our mana inside of the barrier?"

"Mhm, we need as many helping hands as possible. This is the only way we can contain the large explosion from affecting the civilians that have come today."

The instructor's voice became serious.

"You understand how serious the situation is, right?"

If the explosion was not contained, many of the people that had come to attend the tournament would die. Especially since the majority couldn't defend themselves. Not everyone was a powerful hero.

"Understood."

Kevin's back straightened.

Convinced by the instructor's words, Kevin immediately placed his hand on the barrier and injected his mana into it. Jin did as well.

By the side, taking out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, the instructor thought for a moment before asking.

"Want some?"

"No, thank you"

Taken aback for a second, Kevin refused.

Even though smoking was not something that would affect his health as it did in the past, Kevin hated the smell.

next to Kevin was trying to put on a

was the only way he could

"You?"

then turned

"..."

also don't want some...sucks

Flicking his fingers, the cigarette lit

Puff.

rose in the

a nice

"Hm?...what the"

the air, Kevin's brows suddenly knit. Turning

they shut down the

the opposite building to

see the images of some

students in their arms, Kevin could also see some professors rushing towards the entrance of

"I'm also not su—"

"...Hm? Isn't that Ren?"

the instructor a bit,

scene displayed on the screen in the distance, Kevin all of

to comprehend the situation, his body

"W-what."

Kevin's jaw moved up and down repeatedly. But no sound escaped from

be here? Didn't he already arrive? This must be

of thoughts ran through his mind. It was only after that he

"REE——!"

—BOOOOOOOM!

that erupted within the dome. Taking his hand off the barrier, Kevin watched in

monitor's in the distance. Because his face never changed, no one

if someone looked

tightly. So tightly that they were

***

inside of the Lock private waiting

doing over

cried out in

figure staring into the camera. Falling

could see his face.

Then.

—BOOOOOOOM!

the dome, the aftershockes of the explosion were so strong that the

so, no one cared. That was because their eyes were glued on the TV screen in

enveloped by the thick and raging flames

"...kh"

at the scene for a short second, Melissa grit her teeth and turned her

the scene any longer. Though her head was usually always clear, at this moment her mind was a mess. Many thoughts crossed her mind

'Did Ren just die?'

complex problems in the world, for the first time in her life, Melissa found something she couldn't

"...just w-hat?"

her head sideways, she also stopped herself from watching the

hand, she tried to supress her screams. Even then, as if

"..."

the other two, Amanda's eyes never left the screen. Out of the three, she was the only one that

a statue, her eyes remained fixed on the television screen. Amanda's mind was completely

comprehend, process, grasp, what was happening. What had

be dead

to become more laborious for Amanda, and before she knew it, tears had already started falling by the

an almost inaudible voice, Amanda

"...Liar. "

***

"Noooooo!"

of a relatively large apartment, a high-pitched

"Ren!"

crazed person, Samantha Dover, Ren's

Give me

tears had already started falling by

"Mama?"

comprehend a lot. But even then, seeing the state her mother

she too started to

"Maama...whaaa!"

them, bearing a striking resemblance to Ren, was Ronald Dover, his father. He wasn't a many of many

No.

tremendously. The only reason he was still working at a run-down guild that was filled with debt was because of