"GELOOOOOOOOOO!"

A sky-splitting shriek—

jolted me back to my senses.

There couldn’t be just one Bonesoul lurking here…

Two… three… maybe even more…

The realization sent a cold sweat trickling down my spine.

That two-headed hound alone had nearly broken me—

and now I was told monsters like it might be waiting in the shadows? Who could handle that?!

But…

handle it I must.

I’d already promised Kyuubi. With a slow sigh, I pushed myself up, gripping a collapsed chair for support. My legs wobbled.

"Brother! Wait downstairs! I’ve checked floors one and two—they’re safe. So…"

Spotting his figure still there, I shouted across the distance.

He must not have heard me over the chaos in the office.

Only when my voice cut through did he finally turn.

"What’s happening?!"

He ignored my suggestion, demanding answers instead.

"You can’t know. Those monsters… you can’t fight them."

"You want me to leave it all to you?"

"Y-yes."

"Absolutely not! I won’t let Dongyu risk himself like this!"

He rejected my plea without hesitation.

"But I’m the only one who can stop this! No matter what you say… I won’t run from my duty."

"But you’re still—"

"Didn’t *you* teach me? Great power demands equal resolve… This is mine."

"Dongyu…"

"I’ll be fine! Just stay safe, Brother!"

His worry warmed my chest.

At least now I knew…

my family hadn’t forgotten me.

That was enough.

I wouldn’t let his life end here!

I locked eyes with him, my gaze unshakable.

"…If you’re this determined," he finally murmured, shaking his head, "I can’t stop you."

"Find somewhere safe. I’ll explain everything after it’s over~"

*If you even remember any of this.*

This place felt like the Fallen World. When the domain vanished, his memories would likely fade too—just as Kyuubi warned.

"Promise me!"

Seeing my resolve, he stopped arguing. He gave me one last gentle look before turning away.

"Promise!" I called after his retreating back, already pivoting toward the hallway.

To reach the fourth floor, I had to use the stairs inside the faculty office—the route I’d taken earlier led nowhere.

*Probably designed to monitor students,* I thought grimly. *The fourth floor held expensive gear: computer labs, projectors…*

Dragging my exhausted body upward, I finally reached the fourth-floor corridor.

What greeted me…

was hell itself.

Human limbs littered the hallway, gnawed and scattered like discarded bones. One glance would trigger a sancheck.

No matter how many times I saw such carnage…

I still couldn’t bear to look.

Fear coiled in my gut—

yet I forced myself forward.

Stepping over corpses, I crept ahead, senses sharp. Classrooms lined the corridor. Any one could hide a Bonesoul, waiting to pounce.

My fingers were already tight around a transformation card.

Why hadn’t I transformed yet?

My magic was nearly drained. Maintaining the form might be impossible—I didn’t even know if it consumed power continuously. But as the old saying went: *Better safe than sorry.*

"Gurgle… gurgle…"

No sooner had I taken a few steps than Bonesouls emerged, restless and hungry.

Familiar, faceless fish-bone creatures. Their crimson eyes raked over me, greed oozing from their rotten skulls.

So my suspicion was right.

These weren’t lone hunters.

There were *many*.

"Card recognized…"

"Reading complete…"

"Initiating character transformation!"

I slammed the card into my belt.

Silver hair spilled over my shoulders as the Magical Girl form surged back.

I drew Fimilaharde. In this narrow corridor, their agility would be crippled. They’d slipped through broken windows easily enough—but they didn’t know the saying: *Easy to invite a god, hard to send him away.*

Without hesitation, I fired.

Arrows struck true. Several Bonesouls froze solid mid-lunge. Others recoiled, scrambling back through windows.

*Playing scared?* I scoffed inwardly. *They’re smarter than that. Baiting me to chase them into an ambush.*

Would I take the bait?

Never.

My fingers slipped another card from my belt—*Glacial Trident*.

Honestly, it was my only hope of surviving this hallway.

But using it meant draining my magic again.

Leaving me defenseless.

This card was my last resort. Waste it, and *I’d* be the one facing oblivion.

I took a deep breath.

Crouched low.

Counted down silently: *Three… two… one—*

I exploded forward like a released arrow, dodging limbs strewn across the floor. My goal: the far end of the corridor.

*Damn this layout.* The stairs to the roof were on the opposite side. I had to cross this blood-soaked gauntlet.

*Why design a school like this?* Normally, I’d just grumble. Now, every step cost precious strength.

"Why are you doing this?! What did they ever do to you?!"

A voice sliced through the silence.

A young woman’s voice. One I knew intimately.

Her tone was pure accusation—she was confronting the culprit.

"What do you know about me?! WHAT DO YOU KNOW?! You worthless woman—how *dare* you?!"

But the reply wasn’t the girl’s voice from last night.

It was a man’s.

A voice…

I knew *too* well.

Memories crashed over me.

Those women weren’t just linked to Teacher Yang.

Brother had missed something crucial:

*Every single one of them was connected to him.*

But with power…

could memories be twisted?

The man’s voice answered my unspoken questions—

only to birth new ones.

*Who was that girl who attacked me last night?*

*Was it Lin Jincheng’s transformed self?*

I sprinted harder toward the rooftop stairs.

The fish-bone Bonesouls swarmed after me, bursting from classrooms like weeds after rain.

"Perfect."

I let them herd behind me, forming a single-file line.

At the corridor’s sharp turn, I feigned panic, ducking around the corner—then instantly drew Fimilaharde to full draw.

As I pulled the string, an ice-forged trident materialized in the bow’s grip.

*One… two… three…*

Huddled in the shadows, my heart hammered against my ribs. No slack. No mercy.

Closer… closer…

*Now!*

I spun out, Fimilaharde leveled at the Bonesouls lined up like targets.

"Go, Fimilaharde! Bury my enemies in despair’s deep freeze!"

I released the string.

The Glacial Trident tore free—a howling storm of pale blue ice streaking straight toward them.

The moment it left my fingers, my strength vanished. I collapsed to the floor, gasping.

But I wasn’t worried.

Behind me, the entire line of Bonesouls stood frozen solid—trapped in glittering tombs of ice.