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.

the instructor next to Kevin was trying to put on a brave front, Kevin knew that deep down

cigarette was the only way he could deal with

"You?"

then turned

"..."

also don't want

instructor. Flicking his fingers, the cigarette

Puff.

rose in the

beats a

"Hm?...what the"

smoke that was floating in the air, Kevin's brows

they shut

to him was a

could see the images of some of the students desperately running away for their

Kevin could also see some professors rushing towards the

"I'm also not su—"

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

instructor mid-sentence. This anger the instructor a bit, but Kevin did

screen in the distance,

to comprehend

"W-what."

goldfish, Kevin's jaw moved up and down repeatedly. But no sound

to already be here? Didn't he

It was only after that he realized what was happening that

"REE——!"

—BOOOOOOOM!

the dome. Taking his hand off the barrier, Kevin watched in despair as Ren's figure slowly disappeared within the

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

someone looked

see his fists clenched tightly. So tightly that

***

same time, inside of

Ren doing

suddenly cried out

her was Ren's figure staring into the camera. Falling on his knees, he mumbled something to

could see his

Then.

—BOOOOOOOM!

quite far from the dome, the aftershockes of the

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

in the room watched as Ren's body was enveloped by the thick and raging flames coming from

"...kh"

for a short second, Melissa grit her teeth and turned her head to

was usually always clear, at this moment her mind was a mess. Many thoughts crossed her mind as

'Did Ren just die?'

for the first time in her life, Melissa found something she

"...just w-hat?"

showed a similar reaction. Turning her head sideways, she

with her hand, she tried to supress her screams. Even then, as if her throat was dry, no words escaped from

"..."

screen. Out of the three, she was

on the television screen. Amanda's mind

couldn't comprehend, process, grasp, what was happening. What

couldn't be dead

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

mouth, in an almost

"...Liar. "

***

"Noooooo!"

a relatively large apartment, a high-pitched

"Ren!"

front of her, like a crazed person, Samantha Dover, Ren's mother

son! Give me my son back! Give him back

falling by the side of

"Mama?"

But even then, seeing the state her mother was in, Nola understood that

too

"Maama...whaaa!"

Ren, was Ronald Dover, his father. He wasn't a

No.

his family tremendously. The only reason he was still working at a run-down guild that