We were allowed through the checkpoint on the condition that our belongings would be inspected.

It wasn't a problem.

I had already moved all my smaller items into my spatial storage, and the rest were things no one would ever question.

The others were the same—students with nothing suspicious on them. As expected, the inspection ended quickly, and we passed through without issue.

Still, the atmosphere felt… wrong.

"What is all this about?" someone muttered behind me.

"Did something happen to the Academy?"

The moment we crossed the gates, questions flew toward Anna from every direction. What we'd expected to be a simple precaution clearly wasn't.

The guards' expressions, the mana detectors, the unusually large number of patrols—this wasn't normal at all.

Anna hesitated, then raised her hand and pointed ahead.

"Do you see that?"

We followed her gaze.

And froze.

"…What the—"

A building stood in the distance, or rather, what remained of one.

Half of it was blackened and collapsed, the stone walls cracked and scorched as if they'd been clawed by fire itself.

Burn marks stretched outward across the ground, and fragments of rubble were scattered across the courtyard like the aftermath of a battlefield.

Broken windows. Charred beams. Melted stone.

This wasn't an accident.

My throat went dry.

"What happened here…?" I murmured..

"It looks like an attack," someone said quietly.

"No… inside the Academy?"

"That's impossible, right?"

But the evidence was right in front of us.

The Academy—supposed to be one of the safest places in the Empire—had been violated.

I felt a faint chill creep up my spine.

So this is why security was tightened.

Whatever happened here wasn't small enough to brush aside. And judging by the scale of the damage, it wasn't something caused by a mere student accident either.

"Some of the Academy students have revolted."

"What…?"

For a moment, I genuinely thought I'd misheard her.

Revolted?

Students?

My mind stalled, struggling to process the word. I understood that something unusual was happening—there had been an odd tension in the air since morning—but a riot was far beyond what I'd imagined.

"Why…?" I muttered under my breath.

It didn't make sense.

The Academy wasn't a place where chaos happened so easily. Discipline was strict, surveillance was tight, and most students—especially nobles—were obsessed with appearances. Even dissatisfaction was usually hidden behind polite smiles.

There had been no rumors.

No whispers of unrest.

No signs of simmering anger.

At least, none that I knew of.

"Which students are you talking about?" I asked, finally looking straight at Anna.

She met my gaze calmly, her expression composed in a way that made the situation feel even more unreal.

"The common students," she said. "They're the ones who started the riot."

…Ah.

The words landed heavier than I expected.

Students from non-noble, ordinary citizen backgrounds.

My eyes wavered before I could stop them.

So that's how the story was twisting now.

In the original webtoon, there had been tension between nobles and commoners—but it was subtle.

Quiet discrimination. Petty arrogance. Nothing this explosive. A full-blown revolt wasn't supposed to happen until much later, and even then, it was sparked by a very specific incident.

But this?

This was too early.

"And it's not just shouting or protests," Anna continued, her tone steady. "Several facilities have been damaged. A few instructors were injured while trying to intervene."

"…Injured?"

"Yes. That's why the Academy has sealed off several areas."

I clenched my fist unconsciously.

This was bad. No—this was very bad.

Once violence entered the picture, things stopped being a simple clash of opinions. The nobles would react harshly. The Academy would respond with force. And the Imperial side would inevitably get involved.

And when that happened…

Commoners would be the ones crushed first.

*

The Academy's main building loomed in the distance, its towering spires cutting into the gray morning sky.

Normally, this place would be alive with movement—staff hurrying in and out, students chatting noisily as they passed through the halls.

But now…

It was eerily silent.

Not a single voice.

Not even the sound of footsteps.

"So you're saying the students have occupied that building?" I asked, keeping my voice low as we walked.

"That's right," the knight beside me replied with a stiff nod. "They entered late last night. Since then, not a single student has come out."

The same group of students who had caused chaos the night before—setting fires, provoking guards, openly defying academy authority.

And now they had barricaded themselves inside the Academy's main building.

"…Have they made any demands?" I asked after a brief pause.

"I haven't heard the specifics yet," the knight said apologetically. "I only arrived at the Academy myself a short while ago."

That explained it.

So that was why she had been waiting at the main gate.

Anna—who had gone to the Imperial Palace for the holiday—must have rushed back the moment she heard about the disturbance.

She walked a few steps ahead of us, her shoulders tense.

"What a mess…" she muttered. "I thought I could finally get some rest for once."

Her voice was flat, exhausted rather than irritated.

Anna pressed her fingers firmly against her forehead, as if trying to suppress an oncoming headache. The dark circles beneath her eyes made it clear she hadn't slept much since returning.

I didn't blame her.

A student uprising—no matter how small—wasn't something the Academy could afford to treat lightly. Especially not with the nobles involved.

We soon arrived at the front of the main building.

Up close, the atmosphere felt even heavier.

The massive doors were shut tight, reinforced from the inside with furniture and improvised barricades. Traces of scorched stone and half-burned banners still clung to the walls, evidence of last night's unrest.

Knights and academy guards stood in a loose perimeter, weapons sheathed but hands never straying far from their hilts. No one dared approach the doors recklessly.

"They really dug in," I murmured.

Anna followed my gaze, her expression darkening.

"This is already past the level of a childish rebellion," she said quietly. "If this drags on any longer, the Imperial Court will step in."

And once that happened, there would be no room for leniency.

Students or not.

I glanced at the sealed entrance again.

'Occupying the main building… cutting off communication…'

This wasn't something impulsive teenagers would do on a whim.

Someone was guiding them.

Someone who knew exactly how far they could push before crossing the point of no return.

Many people had already gathered by the time we arrived.

Knights—dozens of them—stood in disciplined lines, armor gleaming beneath the daylight, hands resting near their weapons. Still, there was a clear restraint in the air. No one had drawn steel.

After all, the ones inside were students.

Forceful entry was the last option.

"You've arrived," one of the knights said, stepping forward.

"Yes. What's the situation?" Anna asked calmly.

"The students have occupied the main building. We've attempted negotiations, but there's been no response so far."

Anna let out a quiet sigh. "I see."

Then she added, almost casually, "Well, now that I'm here, they'll probably make a move."

As if on cue, the atmosphere shifted.

Murmurs rippled through the crowd.

"They're coming out."

"Look—movement at the entrance."

The massive doors of the main building, which had remained tightly shut until now, slowly creaked open. Every conversation died down at once.

A group of students stepped outside.

At their front, someone raised a flag high into the air.

"Hear the Academy!"

The shout echoed across the courtyard. The flag—bearing the Academy's emblem—fluttered boldly, its colors standing out against the tense backdrop.

So these were the instigators.

Students who had chosen to defy both the Academy and the knights standing before them.

But then—

"…You've got to be kidding me."

My brows knitted together as a familiar figure came into view.

Right at the very front, waving the Academy's flag with far too much enthusiasm, stood Edmund.

A red band was tied around his head like some kind of revolutionary symbol, his expression burning with conviction.

What the hell is that idiot doing there?

Of all places, of all moments—why now?

I could already imagine it: Edmund, swept up in some misplaced sense of justice, charging straight into the role of "leader" without thinking of the consequences.

Around him, other students looked nervous, some fired up, others clearly regretting their decisions. Edmund, however, stood tall, chest puffed out, as if this were a stage meant just for him.

Anna noticed my reaction and followed my gaze.

"…Is that student someone you know?" she asked quietly.

"Unfortunately," I muttered.

Her eyes narrowed slightly as she studied Edmund. "He seems… passionate."

"That's one way to put it," I replied flatly.

More like reckless.

If this escalated even a little further, things could spiral out of control. One wrong word, one sudden movement, and the knights wouldn't be able to hold back anymore.

And Edmund—standing right at the front like that—would be the first one caught in the storm.

I clenched my jaw.

This situation was already bad enough.

But with that idiot leading the charge… it was about to get a whole lot worse.

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