Chapter 1 The Night Falls

The capital of Porrent, Hellsalem, was illuminated by the faint glow of anti-aircraft lights as night fell, the figures on the street filled with the urgency of wartime.

The outline of the parliament building stood out even more against the night sky, like a lighthouse about to go out.

Behind a square of brightly lit windows in a tall building, which consistently emitted a dim yellow light, was Lanchi's solemn face, reflecting his conscientious work ethic as he spoke with his secretary.

His secretary, originally filled with awe and a little restraint, gradually relaxed as he spoke, and the distance between them began to close.

Outside the Shadow World.

Ikari Academy, just past eight in the morning.

Jella Memorial Square, the open-air giant screen and the surrounding steps were bathed in bright light.

However, unlike usual, there were significantly more students watching the open-air giant screen, and the noise and discussions were endless.

"A Seventh-Order Shadow World?"

A Seventh-Order open-world Shadow World flashed across the screen.

They rarely saw Shadow Worlds of this level.

Even fourth-year students might not be able to break through to the Seventh-Order and encounter a Seventh-Order Shadow World.

"How did Lanchi get into the Seventh-Order Shadow World? Did he team up with a Seventh-Order?"

The students of the Sage Institute had missed Lanchi's antics during his semester-long absence, but they didn't expect him to make such a splash upon his return.

"Oh my god, does Dean Loren know he went to the Seventh-Order Shadow World?"

Now, their biggest concern was Dean Loren's condition.

Normally, the Sage Institute would have already started a meeting.

But Loren was out of town and would likely be late to hear the news.

No one knew who Loren was meeting, but if Loren found out that Lanchi had run into the Seventh-Order Shadow World with Hyperion, he would return to Ikari in the first instance.

As everyone knows, a failure in the Seventh-Order Shadow World will trigger unimaginable natural disasters.

The Shadow World is like a double-edged sword. It periodically opens, with an endless number of them. The timelines and worldviews may be different. Some are easy and simple, while others are exceptionally dangerous. They appear without warning at fixed or random entrances in this world. They are projections of historical fragments or alternate world histories. If left unattended, the Shadow World will automatically close after a certain time limit, also leading to natural disasters that蚕食 (canshi – nibble away at) the present world.

Clearing the Shadow World yields a large number of rewards, while failure leads to natural disasters in certain parts of the world.

The higher the order of the Shadow World, the more exponential the increase in rewards or disasters.

Therefore, countries are doing their best to cultivate talents who are good at conquering Shadow Worlds, which is also the responsibility of Ikari Academy.

If a student's excessive mistakes cause an accident, leading to a large-scale natural disaster in the present world, Ikari Academy will also bear primary responsibility!

Since Lanchi and Hyperion were involved, Loren was undoubtedly primarily responsible.

"Originally, after what happened with Senior Asina, I heard that many high-ranking kingdom officials, led by Duke Agares, were using this to impeach Dean Loren. There have also been voices fanning the flames from outside the Kingdom of Hutton, as they don't want Loren to be too prominent, nor do they want Ikari Academy to continue to occupy too many resources and association support."

Many Ikari Academy students were analyzing the situation.

Judging from this, at this critical moment, Lanchi's fatal operation of entering the Seventh-Order Shadow World meant that if Dean Loren wasn't self-destructing, then he was playing a grand game.

"Thinking on the bright side, the operating space in the Seventh-Order Shadow World is also much larger. The duration and map are all considered free, and there are countless ancient figures to meet. Lanchi, as Dean Loren's secret weapon, maybe everything is within Dean Loren's plan."

Although most people inside and outside the school in front of the giant screen expressed concern, there were still students who had witnessed Lanchi's previous two Shadow Worlds who chose to believe first and question later.

"But... the theme this time..."

These words made many people look at the screen again, and their voices became hesitant.

After not seeing Lanchi for half a year, he seemed to be much more rusty in challenging the Shadow World. In such a tight situation, he was aimlessly chatting with his secretary about many topics unrelated to the war. One could only see the secretary's eyes gradually changing. No one knew what Lanchi was doing, or what new skill this was.

After entering the Shadow World, people will gain unpredictable new identities to perform historical fragments.

Sometimes it may be an identity that is very consistent with one's own functions, and sometimes it may be quite bad, requiring special experience to control the position.

The higher the position, the higher the requirements for ability and the more difficult the task.

This was the first time they had seen someone so unlucky, starting the Shadow World as a prime minister at the end of his rope!

Generally speaking, whoever gets this identity basically ends the game at the start.

……

Ikari, the royal capital of Hutton.

Not far from the City Hall, the Duke Agares's mansion, befitting his family background and power.

The air was filled with a faint fragrance, emanating from a row of potted plants near the windows of the drawing-room.

Dark blue tapestries hung on the walls, and the Agares family crest depicted the fusion of power, trade, and humanity.

Two middle-aged men in luxurious clothes sat calmly on the sofa, discussing recent kingdom affairs across a low tea table inlaid with rubies.

Suddenly, Marquis Cassigaus, as a guest, seemed to think of something.

"Duke Agares, you can leave Loren to me. Although his reputation has been soaring recently, this cannot hide his decline in education."

Marquis Cassigaus leaned closer, looking like he was taking the lead and making a promise to Duke Agares.

Abandoning Asina was an absurd act that even the King lamented, and Loren had clearly made a mistake this time.

"..."

Duke Agares examined Marquis Cassigaus and nodded slightly.

He looked out the window, his thoughts also drifting away, making it difficult for Cassigaus to fathom Duke Agares's mood.

Not long after.

Accompanied by footsteps, a secretary-like attendant walked into the drawing-room with a rigorous and elegant pace.

The attendant walked to Duke Agares's side, bowed slightly, and spoke in a volume that only the three of them could hear.

The Duke listened to his words, and his expression, which had never changed, began to show slight surprise.

Until the attendant retreated.

Duke Agares muttered Loren's name, clenching his fist.

"Loren... you are too indulgent with your students, and the consequences you've created, now you have to taste them, haven't you?"

He muttered to himself, as if old and new grudges had finally found an opportunity to settle.

"Hahaha."

Marquis Cassigaus, who was on the other side, couldn't help but sneer when he saw Duke Agares making a statement.

Loren was too funny.

He was originally worried that relying solely on the Asina incident would not be enough to impeach Loren. Now, even if the opposition did not kick him while he was down, the Kingdom of Hutton would not be able to withstand the pressure from the Southern Continent Kingdom United Assembly and the Shadow World Management Association.

If a natural disaster is triggered by the failure of the Seventh-Order Shadow World, this will have an extremely negative impact on the international reputation of the Kingdom of Hutton and Ikari Academy!

"Lanchi, is that the student who is always hanging out with Mikaia's daughter?"

Duke Agares asked.

He didn't know much about the small fights of the new students in Ikari Academy, but he had vaguely heard that there was a new student in the Sage Institute named Lanchi who had defeated the Destroyer Saintess, allowing Loren to pick up another young genius after Asina.

His more impression of this young man named Lanchi was that he was very good at licking the young lady of the Mikaia Duke's family, and he looked like he wanted to retire at the age of twenty and live off a rich woman.

"That's the guy."

Marquis Cassigaus slapped the armrest of the sofa and showed a gloating smile.

"It's easy now. No matter how the Kingdom United Assembly and the international community put pressure on us in the days to come, we will push Loren up and fully support him. Anyway, that guy won't shirk his responsibility."

When the situation wasn't going Loren's way, there was no need to openly offend Loren. They could act as spies, and at this time, act as Loren's supporters, desperately discrediting him.

In the next period of time, Loren would probably not be able to tell who was really trying to help him and who was trying to drag him down.

As the saying goes, a just cause attracts much support, while an unjust one finds little. Without them taking action, various forces would naturally suppress Loren, and the wind would turn against Loren, portraying him as an extremely reckless and failed dean!

A Seventh-Order Shadow World, and a hellish start at that. No matter how heaven-defying Loren's students were, they couldn't turn the tide of public opinion for their teacher this time.

Even Loren didn't understand politics, so what kind of prime minister could that kid named Lanchi be?

(End of chapter)