Chapter 250: [Freedom Dove] - Nerio’s part (2)
"Alright, go on in."
The guard accepted Leonard’s admission notice, then quickly waved him off.
Leonard walked forward, but his gaze clung to the neatly folded uniforms on the side.
A male voice suddenly rang out: "Are these uniforms for us?"
Leonard and the others turned to look, only to see a young man with striking, slightly wavy red hair standing to the side, his hand already reaching for a uniform. Clearly, he hadn’t really asked a question—he’d already decided these were his.
[Eh, we don’t know each other, but man, you’ve caught my attention!]
[How is someone of this caliber only showing up now?! What a delay!]
[Confirmed, this is the main visual of this dungeon.]
[Why does this guy feel a little familiar to me?]
[+1]
The guard’s cold voice rang out: "You’re students yet don’t know that the school requires uniforms? Your old schools must’ve had no discipline! No wonder you’ve ended up here. Rules here are strict—if you can’t follow them, you can leave right now!"
His tone carried a hint of irritation, his hands withdrawing, though his hoarse voice continued spilling out from inside the booth.
Behind them, fog stretched wide, as if something was churning within it, eager to swallow everything whole—but it unwillingly stopped right at the school gates, even though the gates stood broken open.
"I like breaking rules the most."
The red-haired youth laughed with reckless arrogance, yet still wore the uniform. The others, realizing this was the rule, hurried forward to grab theirs as well.
The red-haired youth crossed his arms and leaned against the guard booth. The booth seemed to tremble a little, but he showed no fear. Instead, he hummed, "Looks like there aren’t enough uniforms."
As he spoke, his narrowed eyes slid toward Leonard, who stood to the side fidgeting with his fingers, hesitating as though wanting to say something.
Hearing that, Leonard quickened his pace, but his body was frailer than the other espers—after pushing for a while, he still couldn’t squeeze in.
There were 21 people, but only 20 uniforms. Naturally, Leonard was the one left without.
He timidly approached the guard booth, hesitating: "Guard, there aren’t enough uniforms."
The guard raised his voice: "Not my problem. That’s for the management office. Go ask them."
"Pfft."
The red-haired youth sneered at Leonard, then swaggered off.
Someone also said: "We have to follow the school rules—we must get to class on time!"
Everyone instinctively turned toward the clock on the guard booth: 6:51.
They didn’t know precisely when class started, but the sooner they got to their classrooms, the better.
Earlier, their admission notices had listed their classroom information, but they had no idea where to go.
The school had three separate buildings. Each building had three floors, each floor with a long corridor and over a dozen classrooms. They didn’t know which classrooms were theirs, and finding them would already waste a lot of time.
"We need to hurry," someone urged, and the group quickly picked up the pace.
Leonard could only run forward with them.
[Leonard, it’s surprising he got dragged into this again.]
[This is clearly foreshadowing that my baby Nerio will appear!]
[Nerio must show up—look at Leonard, your most devout believer is being bullied, O great Nerio!]
[Leonard, raise your head and straighten your back! He’s already shrunk nearly 10cm with that hunched-over posture!]
[Ugh, so frustrating. It’s laughable that someone like this actually wields heaven-defying power.]
[Haha, and that’s precisely why he can catch Nerio’s attention. At the very least, he definitely has a kind heart.]
[Unusual taste.]
"What’s your classroom?"
"I’m in A1-03."
The group began discussing, searching for classmates who might share the same room.
The three buildings were clearly labeled A, B, and C. A1 should mean the first floor if ordered commonly, with the number afterward indicating the classroom.
After some discussion, they realized they were all in building A, though split across three floors—seven students per floor. Fortunately, each group of seven was assigned to the same classroom.
Leonard learned that his classroom was on the third floor so that they might be late.
The group had no choice but to speed up even more.
By then, no other students were walking around. Even the classrooms were sealed tight—the doors and windows pasted over with paper so no one could see inside. The place was far too quiet for a school.
"I... I can’t go on anymore."
Just as they reached the staircase to the third floor, a trembling voice suddenly rang out.
A girl with an ordinary appearance, freckles scattered across her face, clutched the railing with trembling hands. Her legs shook as though she might collapse at any moment.
Her eyes were wide open, tears streaming silently down her cheeks. Every breath came in ragged gasps, as if she might faint and die at any second.
She shook her head frantically. "I... I can’t."
She was clearly just an ordinary human, stepping into a dungeon for the first time—and one with a fragile mind.
The others cast her glances. A man suddenly descended the steps to support her, smiling gently in reassurance: "It’ll be alright. We need to keep moving up!"
He had brown hair and eyes, draped in a white cloak marked with the insignia of twin wings—a familiar face—Damian, a believer of the angel Michael.
The girl shook her head again and again, consumed by fear of death.
She was so timid that she didn’t dare look up at the sky whenever a dungeon opened. Weak and powerless, the only thing she could do was pray for victory to reach them.
The monsters here could swallow her whole in a single bite. Someone like her was sure to die the moment the fight began. She didn’t dare... she was afraid... terrified...
The more her mind spun, the more twisted images flooded her thoughts. Her legs buckled, leaving her entirely reliant on Damian to hold her upright.
" Tch."
Just then, someone further up the stairs clicked his tongue.
It was a towering man, nearly two meters tall, with a scruffy beard and dressed in combat gear. The issued uniform strained against his bulky frame.
"We need to move. We have to clear this dungeon and win for humanity. If we keep getting delayed by weak links like this, it’ll only bring us losses."
He didn’t bother to conceal his thoughts. To him, this girl could be discarded—she didn’t matter.
"So what, you’re suggesting we split up?" Damian frowned, his gaze sharp.
He lifted his head, his aura dimming slightly, but his eyes showed no hesitation.
The man sneered at that. He wrapped an arm around the waist of a woman standing nearby, pulling her close.
Her ample chest pressed against him, forming a deep cleavage under the pressure. The man jeered, "No. I have my own team. And obviously, my team doesn’t include useless trash."
"Everyone was a newcomer once," Damian said gravely.
"But I wasn’t." The man snorted, then swaggered ahead, clearly done showing where he stood.
Damian’s brows knit tighter as he watched the man’s retreating figure. A bitter smile flickered on his lips before he turned back, helping the girl to her feet and murmuring gently: "Don’t be afraid. As long as we work together, we can survive this."
The girl’s face was soaked with tears. Her hand clutched Damian’s so tightly that scratches appeared across his skin.
But she suddenly shoved him away just as they reached the third floor. Damian staggered, nearly tumoring down.
He quickly grabbed the railing, frowning as he looked up—then his eyes widened, and he cried out instinctively: "No!"
But it was too late. The girl had already vaulted over the balcony, hurling herself down without hesitation.
Too terrifying. It was all too terrifying. She couldn’t bear such torment. Better to die. Better to die!