I Am The Game's Villain

Chapter 429  [Event] [Semester-Exam At Vanadias] [17] The Hardest Exam

"Are you really sure about this, Harvey?" James Raven's voice rang inside a room.

The room itself was a hub of constant motion, filled with people seated at control panels, their eyes glued to the myriad of screens lining the walls. Each screen displayed live footage of different zones of the sprawling forest. The students, scattered across the forest, could be seen stirring from sleep, some already beginning to rise, stretching their limbs as they prepared for the day.

Harvey Zestella, standing tall, shifted his gaze from the nearest monitor and looked toward James. "About what?" He asked, though the knowing look in his eyes suggested he already understood James' concern.

"I understand the logic behind sending the strongest students to the most dangerous zones, but… even for them, this could be life-threatening. We're pushing them hard. Too hard, perhaps," James said.

Harvey remained unfazed. "There's no true risk of death. We have seasoned teams stationed in every zone, ready to intervene if things spiral out of control. And as long as the students wear the Life Screens on their arms, they are shielded from fatal harm."

His eyes darkened as he continued, "This is the hardest Practical Exam for a reason. Every student who passes through our Academy must endure it at least once. They need to learn to face real danger head-on. Especially now, with war looming over us."

James met Harvey's hardened gaze, knowing he was right but still unable to shake the gnawing unease in his chest. "You're right. We'll be closing the Academy temporarily once this Exam is over."

Harvey gave a curt nod. "We have decisions to make—hard ones. The students are the future, after all. Utopia will likely target them, especially those with promise. But at the same time, we might need their strength. They could become powerful allies in the coming conflict. It will be up to us, the elders, to protect them from the shadows."

James didn't respond immediately, his thoughts drifting into a swirl of conflicting emotions. If it were up to him, he would keep the students as far from the war as possible. Shield them from the brutal reality that awaited beyond the safety of their house during the war.

But deep down, he knew Harvey had a point. The students of Trinity Eden Academy were not ordinary. Each one was handpicked, molded into an elite, and some of them, despite their youth, had already surpassed the strength of seasoned commanders. And then there were those from the Great Houses—students so powerful they were practically living weapons, destined to become crucial players in the war.

Still, there was one thought that troubled him more than all the rest.

'I just don't want my cute Alicia to be part of this war!'

James's heart sank as the image of his daughter, Alicia, came to mind. He wanted nothing more than to protect her, to keep her safe from the horrors that were bound to unfold. But knowing her as he did, he doubted she would listen to him. Alicia was headstrong, just like her mother. Perhaps if her mother spoke to her, she might reconsider... but even that was uncertain.

Harvey glanced at James, who had fallen silent, lost in his thoughts. As a father himself, Harvey could easily understand James's concerns. He, too, carried his own quiet worries about his daughter, Celeste. However, unlike before, his apprehensions had slowly started to ease in recent months. There was something different about her now, a newfound maturity and strength that hadn't been there before. Celeste had grown—both in ability and in spirit.

Harvey's mind drifted back to the transformation he had witnessed in his daughter. She was no longer the reluctant girl who shied away from the path laid before her. Celeste, once resistant and openly disdainful of her role as the Prophetess, had begun to accept and embrace her fate. Her awakening had begun. Harvey could see it—the Prophetess abilities slowly emerging, manifesting in subtle ways that reminded him more and more of her mother, Sara. The resemblance was striking, not only in appearance but in the gravity with which she now approached her future responsibilities.

To see Celeste, who had once seemed to despise both the role of Prophetess and the Apostles for what had happened to her mother, now take up the mantle so seriously—it was a wonder to Harvey. Though he held some doubts toward a certain annoying student with amber eyes.

Harvey's gaze softened immediately as he watched one of the screens, which showed Celeste moving carefully through the dense greenery of the 7th Zone. She was strong, composed, and completely in control of her environment. His heart swelled with pride, though he was careful to keep his emotions masked behind his usual stern expression.

"Professor Harvey," James's voice cut through his reverie, pulling him back to the present, "that's the tenth time you've checked your daughter's screen. Try to at least pretend you care about the other students," James added, sighing in exasperation.

Harvey blinked, startled. "O-Of course I care about all of my students," he replied quickly as he straightened his posture. "I was simply... assessing the situation. Speaking of which, what about the ten students who showed some irregularities in synchronizing with their Life-Screens? Any updates?"

He shifted the conversation deftly, trying to hide his embarrassment. He could almost imagine Celeste's reaction if she found out he'd been hovering over her screen like some overprotective parent. She'd probably call him a 'creep,' a term she had no qualms using when his fatherly instincts went too far. The thought made Harvey cringe inwardly. He didn't think he'd be able to recover easily from such a sharp insult, especially coming from her.

A nearby staff member cleared his throat and quickly answered, "Oh, those students? They recovered quite fast. We checked their vitals, and everything seemed stable, so we sent them out into the forest with the others."

"What? On whose authority did you send them back out? Did you at least verify what caused the synchronization issues with their Life-Screens in the first place?" Harvey asked, annoyed.

The staff member faltered, his eyes darting nervously away. "Ah... no, Professor. They seemed fine afterward, and the Life-Screens were functioning perfectly. We thought it was just a temporary glitch, so we didn't think further investigation was necessary..."

Harvey's frown deepened in displeasure. He shot a quick glance at James, hoping for some clarification, but James appeared just as unaware of the situation as he was. ***

"Centuries ago, in the heart of Sancta Vedelia, there was a day that time itself has tried to bury. The people of this land might have forgotten, but Sancta Vedelia could never forget. The Elves, of all beings, should have remembered—but the elders of Sancta Vedelia made a choice. They swore to keep the truth locked away, shared only amongst themselves. Yet, secrets are like whispers carried in the wind. They cannot be contained forever. The Elves who fled Sancta Vedelia took that forbidden knowledge with them, scattering it across the world beyond the safety of our borders."

A young Elven woman, very beautiful, stepped out from the shadow of a towering, ancient tree. Her delicate features were illuminated by the soft, filtered light breaking through the forest canopy. Her deep hazel eyes were fixed on the dome of shimmering energy in the distance—a dome erected to safeguard the ongoing exam within the forest. "What secret could that be, Lady Viessa?" A voice broke the silence, drawing attention to the figure standing behind her. His green hair, twisted and wild, gave him a disheveled, almost feral appearance, though his Elven heritage still clung to him, visible in the sharp angles of his face.

Viessa didn't immediately respond. Instead, her lips curled into a subtle, almost cruel smile as she glanced back toward the towering white tree far away behind them.

The Holy Tree of Eden.

"Every blessing comes with a price."