Chapter 4

"Klap," after entering what appeared to be a classroom in the main building, the female staff member motioned for Axel to sit down in front of her.

"Alright, let's talk about what just happened to you, but first, let me introduce myself. My name is Miyuki," Miyuki said, extending her hand.

"Oh... right, my name is Axel," he replied, shaking her hand.

After shaking hands, Miyuki slid the book she had placed on the desk over to Axel. Of course, Axel looked confused as he stared at the thick, leather-bound book with gold lettering on the cover.

"The Book of SSS Gurus," Axel thought to himself. He then looked at Miyuki. "Um... what kind of book is this, Ms. Miyuki?" Axel asked.

"This book was formed on top of the tube from the crimson light that seemed to be refracted from inside the tube. When this book formed, and you had been inside for three minutes, I immediately shut down the machine and took it. I'm now returning the book to you, its owner," Miyuki answered.

"I-is that so?" Axel said. He opened the book to look inside, but he was instantly stunned and lifted it up to show Miyuki. "It's empty, ma'am. Look," he said, flipping through the pages, which were just blank white paper.

Miyuki's face, however, froze in shock. She quickly regained her composure. "Ehem," she cleared her throat and looked at Axel with a serious expression.

"Axel, please put the book on the desk," Miyuki said.

Axel did as he was told, closing the book and placing it on the desk. Miyuki reached out and tried to lift the cover, and "blaaar," a blue lightning bolt immediately struck her hand. It passed right through because Miyuki's ability was "ghost." She could turn her body transparent and intangible, allowing her to pass through objects and elements. "Braaak," the lightning bolt that had struck her hand shot up and hit the ceiling.

"You see? Only you can open that book without being attacked by whatever is inside. An association staff member who tried to touch it is currently being rushed to the hospital after getting hit by lightning when he took the book, which is what terrified your friends into silence," Miyuki explained.

"Oh... that's why I heard a bunch of footsteps earlier... but why is that? It's just a normal book, isn't it?" Axel muttered, pondering to himself as he opened the book again and looked at the blank pages.

"Alright, that's enough. You can go home now," Miyuki said.

"Wait a minute, Ms. Miyuki. I want to see Abby... Abigail... can I?" Axel replied.

"Hmm... I'm sorry, but not for now," Miyuki replied.

"Huh? Why not? I promised I'd follow her," Axel yelled, standing up.

"Because your childhood friend has an SS-rank. In this country, there are only nine people with an SS-rank, and your childhood friend is the ninth," Miyuki replied.

"W-what? Abby... an SS-rank?" Axel asked.

"That's right. You saw it yourself, didn't you? She easily took down two S-rank guards at once, even though she still has no idea how she did it," Miyuki replied.

"Brugh," Axel slumped back into his chair, staring blankly at the desk as if he was fascinated by its texture. Then he looked back at Miyuki.

"What's my rank?" Axel asked hopefully.

"I'm sorry, Axel... I'm not supposed to give you a Chaser rank, but if you were to be evaluated, your rank would be... F... Again, I'm sorry," Miyuki replied, feeling bad for him.

"Jleger," Axel felt like he had been struck by lightning in broad daylight. All the hope he had vanished instantly. His goal of making money and finding out what caused his brother to be severely injured and fall into a coma, proving he could be like other people, and helping pay for his sister's school fees, not to mention the possibility of losing his childhood friend. Everything hit him at once, leaving his mind empty and without direction.

"What should I do now?" Axel muttered without realizing it.

"I believe you can succeed in other fields, Axel. I'll pass on your message to your friend Abby. Do you want to leave a message?" Miyuki asked.

"Just tell her congratulations. I'm really sincere about it. Of course, she's happy that I won't be a Chaser, as she hoped so I wouldn't end up like my brother, in a coma in the hospital, haha," Axel replied, defeated.

"Your brother is in a coma in the hospital? Is he a Chaser?" Miyuki asked, suddenly sitting down again.

"Yeah, he's a Chaser. He was found severely injured in the dungeon and was brought out by the next team that went in after he and his team failed to complete their mission," Axel replied, resigned, not even looking at the person he was talking to.

"Wait... your brother... Theodor?" Miyuki asked.

Axel immediately looked up at Miyuki, who was now sitting in front of him with a serious expression.

"That's right. Do you know my brother?" Axel asked.

"Of course I do. Theo is quite famous. He's the only S-rank who almost reached SS-rank, but... unfortunately, he had an accident in the dungeon. The association is still investigating the cause because his entire team survived except for him, and their story is a little strange," Miyuki replied.

"What? His team survived? Their story is strange? And why is my brother's rank S, wasn't he rank A? Can you please tell me?" Axel asked, standing up so suddenly his chair fell over.

"I'm sorry, but I can't talk about it right now because I'm still on duty. Maybe we could meet up for coffee sometime?" Miyuki suggested, her face serious.

"Okay, I understand. Please let me know the time and place. This is my contact number," Axel said, offering her his chat app QR code.

Miyuki quickly scanned his code with her phone and immediately put it back in her pocket, unseen by anyone. Axel saw that Miyuki's name was already on his contact list. He then held out his hand to Miyuki, who stood up to shake it. After that, Miyuki turned around, but before she walked away,

"Alright, until next time, Axel. I'll let you know when, and there's something else I want to talk to you about regarding Theo," Miyuki said.

"Okay, Ms. Miyuki," Axel replied.

"Oh, one more thing, I almost forgot. Since you're an F-rank, you can join a mining group in the dungeon after the Chasers have cleared all the monsters and only the boss is left. If you want, I can help you register. The money isn't that great and doesn't match the risk, but it's still way better than a part-time job," Miyuki said after opening the door and turning back to face Axel.

"Yes, please, Ms. Miyuki. Please help me," Axel replied, his face lighting up.

"Okay, wait for my message. I have to go now. Bye, Axel. See you again soon," Miyuki said, stepping out.

Axel waved and sat back down. He looked at the book in his hand. "Flip," he opened it again.

"What's the meaning of this book? It's just blank pages... is this my power? If it is, that's really pathetic," Axel thought to himself, staring at the empty pages.

[Huh... what did you say?]

Suddenly, a loud and deep male voice echoed inside Axel's head. Surprised, Axel dropped the book onto the desk and stood up.

"Hey, who's there?" Axel asked, looking around.

[Hey... look here.]

"W-who? W-where are you?" Axel asked, scared.

[Look at the book in front of you.]

Axel walked over to the open book on the desk. His eyes widened as he saw the silhouettes of five men standing in a row across both pages.

"Huh... w-what is this?" Axel asked.

[Huh... not what... we're your five potential mentors.]

"P-potential mentors? Teachers?" Axel asked.

[Don't ask so many questions.]

Suddenly, a massive fist, like that of an ancient martial artist, flew out of the book. "Buaak," the fist landed squarely in the middle of Axel's face, knocking him out cold. But before Axel's head could hit the desk, the large hand grabbed his hair and pulled his body into the book. After that, the book closed tightly, locked, and disappeared from the desk.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***