Kaiser looked at the screen and read the headlines, his expression unchanging.

"A worker almost killed a student?"

Hazel nodded, then posed a question of her own.

"But why? Why would he suddenly attack a student?"

Kaiser shrugged indifferently. He didn’t know, and he didn’t care to know.

Seeing his reaction, Hazel frowned.

"This is quite a big issue, you know? If the campus isn’t safe for the students anymore, then the limiters will only become a burden."

"Students wouldn’t be able to defend themselves."

"Oh?" Kaiser raised an eyebrow. Hazel had deduced the main problem quickly.

"In that case, let’s see how the academy responds to this incident."

He looked up at the security camera in the corner, his eyes glinting with something unrecognizable.

Hazel nodded curtly, then paused.

"Are you free by any chance?"

Kaiser glanced at her, his gaze questioning.

"That’s unusual. Aren’t you supposed to be resting now?"

Her shoulders stiffened for a few seconds, then she relaxed.

"That’s none of your concern. Are you free or not?"

Rolling his eyes, Kaiser walked towards the exit of the dormitory.

"Where do you want to visit?"

Walking beside him, Hazel replied flatly.

"The Training Facility."

"Ehh? This is clearly unusual. I wonder what you’re up to."

"Tch. Like you haven’t guessed already."

"Who knows?"

"You’re insufferable."

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the Training Facility and booked a normal training room.

Seeing him arrive with another female student, the female receptionist gave him a stink-eye, probably misunderstanding the situation.

Rolling his eyes, Kaiser followed behind Hazel and entered the training room.

There was sufficient lighting in the room, and although the equipment was not as advanced as the ones in the private training room, they were still standard.

As usual, there was a dormant automaton in the room.

Hazel stepped forward, her limiter already deactivated the moment she entered.

"I’m asking you to evaluate my fighting prowess. Compared to the top students in our first-year and you, how strong am I?"

Kaiser paused, tilting his head curiously.

"Hm? I haven’t seen your full power, though."

Hazel nodded, feeling a subtle hum in the marble tiles beneath her.

"That is what I want to show you. Watch carefully, alright?"

Kaiser stepped back, giving her some space.

"Are you sure? You would be exposing all your abilities and weaknesses to me."

The girl’s brown eyes remained resolute.

"I’m not doing this for the class. I am doing this for myself."

Turning to face the automaton, she summoned her armor and the familiar black sword.

’I can’t neglect my own growth and let the class drag me down.’

That would be an even greater disappointment to her father.

"What level do you suggest?"

Leaning against the wall, Kaiser crossed his arms and answered.

"You should try Level Five. Be careful not to die though."

Hazel froze, the weight settling in her mind.

’Level Five...’

She had only ever practiced with Level One or Level Two automatons. Suddenly facing a Level Five automaton was...

Sighing, her gaze once again became resolute.

"Set the automaton to Level Five."

When she spoke, her voice was clear and even.

To their surprise, the artificial intelligence gave a negative reply.

["Access denied. Threat level would be tyrannical for your grade."]

Hazel blinked, then turned back to give Kaiser a questioning look.

The boy closed his eyes briefly, then stared directly at the automaton.

"Access granted."

As Hazel turned in disbelief, the automaton powered up, light shining in its eye sockets.

"Wait. What did you—?"

["Bypass detected. Attempting to shut down autom—"]

"Shut up."

Kaiser’s irritated voice forced the artificial intelligence to go silent, becoming completely helpless.

Before the power of the Cursed Voice, mere technology had little power.

Witnessing the academy’s artificial intelligence system being casually dismissed, Hazel’s confusion snowballed.

"Kaiser? What the hell did y—!!!"

Clang!

Her instincts screamed, and she immediately raised her sword.

Something sharp and heavy slammed into her raised weapon, sending her staggering.

’Focus!’

Ignoring the anomaly of Kaiser’s abilities, Hazel focused on the automaton before her.

She hadn’t even seen it move.

’I have to go all out—from the start.’

She activated her ability, poured essence into her nodes, and engulfed her sword in flames.

The automaton replied by raising its own sword, taking a sword stance that was completely unfamiliar.

Hazel’s eyes narrowed, but she wasn’t given time to process the stance.

The automaton attacked. The sound of wind being torn apart reached her ears, and she immediately swung her flaming sword.

Shiing!

Even though she reacted quickly, it was still late.

She could only deflect the sword from reaching her neck. Instead, the blow landed on her shoulder.

Her knees buckled, and a stinging pain shot through her nerves and bones.

There was a cut on her armor where the blade had landed, and her blood was already flowing from the wound.

’This is...’

Alert, she immediately retreated, locking her gaze onto the automaton.

The searing flames from her sword had licked the metallic surface of its arms, but it merely wiped it away as if it were dirt.

’Haa... I guess this is what level five looks like.’

Her expression turned solemn, but her fighting spirit burned brighter.

Suppressing the pain from her injured shoulder, she dashed at the automaton.

Her attack was a simple slash, and the automaton easily dodged.

Hazel’s eyes followed its movements even as she missed.

Abruptly, she turned around and attacked the automaton again, abandoning her earlier feint.

It had only been to force the automaton into a suitable range for her own attack.

Clang!

The two crossed swords, a pair of inhuman eyes staring into her hazel eyes.

Hazel almost flinched, startled by the intensity in that gaze. Wasn’t the automaton supposed to be a machine? Why did it feel so human?

’Focus!’

Using that brief moment of distraction, the automaton had pushed her back, then attacked her.

Instead of a sword, a heavy punch slammed into her guts, sending her skidding meters away.

Hazel grunted, almost vomiting. Her eyes bulged in their sockets, and it felt like the entirety of her innards had been pulverized.

’This bastard machine...’

As she slowly straightened, a faint golden glow enveloped her.

Her ability was starting to come alive.