Hierarchy.
It’s all about standing in line based on some criteria, and in a gathering of emotional beings, a hierarchy inevitably forms.
In that brutal food chain, the higher up you are, the more benefits you get. This is something that doesn’t even need explaining. It’s just obvious.
Therefore.
Ezekiel was determined to take the top of this hierarchy.
This place was not a welcome party for newcomers. Rather, it was a spot aimed at completely pressing down and excluding new members, so you had to rise to be respected.
Benefits and disadvantages.
What you wanted between the two was all too clear.
“What, what, what…?”
The green-haired, elf-eared guy with antlers sprouting from his head wore a look of bewilderment.
“What do you mean right now…?”
With the incident already underway, the other members were simply observing the situation. They were sizing up the new member before deciding how to act.
Ezekiel welcomed that attitude.
The more they measured his capabilities, the more they would side with him.
The antlered guy flipped his bangs back dramatically.
“Bone, say that again.”
Though he looked like a bomb ready to explode with anger, Ezekiel remained completely unfazed.
“I just gave it a light tap. Like, um…”
“This lunatic!”
Sparkles flew from the antlered guy’s eyes.
It seemed he was really angry, but that was actually better. It was preferable to seeing that face getting all puffed up and arrogant.
But then, it happened.
“Hey, wicked self.”
The moment the antlered guy emitted an overwhelming amount of mana.
WHOOSH─!
A tremendous weight began to crush Ezekiel. Was this what it felt like when gravity suddenly became stronger?
The mana held a weight that was beyond compare.
‘But it feels subtly different from real mana.’
It had an unpleasant sensation of artificially increased weight, didn’t it? At the same time, Ezekiel understood. This was the “calibration” effect inside the virtual world.
‘So that’s how it works.’
He marveled once again at the refined illusions of the Black World. It was a principle where regular magic was fine-tuned through illusion and imposed on the opponent.
Ezekiel examined the opponent’s status.
[ Name: ??? ]
[ Class: Mage, specialized in mana manipulation. ]
A mage receiving aid in mana manipulation was a much better class compared to Ezekiel’s idle role.
The antlered guy increased his power even more.
“Look me in the eye and say it again.”
“Hmmm.”
Ezekiel began to move his fingers slowly, becoming accustomed to the rules of this world. The conclusion was simple. He really felt that he who changed his body was the strongest.
Still, even now, his body felt light.
“Why no response? Have you only just realized your place?”
The antlered guy prodded Ezekiel.
The surrounding members finally relaxed, starting to munch on snacks. It probably looked like the newly joined member was getting suppressed.
“Bone, up until now you’ve had no problem running your mouth, right? Oh, did I go too hard? You won’t die or anything, will you? I guess I should lighten up.”
That was a lie. He was actually ramping it up.
Was Ezekiel’s single remark so blusteringly prideful that it could provoke the antlered guy into pulling out all the stops to suppress him?
Of course, Ezekiel was totally unfazed.
“I don’t know why, but why do you want to hear it multiple times?”
“Scared to say it again, huh? Can’t handle it?”
“I said I hit lightly, thinking of your mother.”
“…?”
Shock washed over the antlered guy’s face in waves.
“What, what? I seriously raised the intensity…?”
It seemed the shock was so great that he confessed his own lie. A stark contrast to the usual Ezekiel.
‘They probably don’t think I’m from the Imperial Tower.’
Ezekiel could say many things to cut down the opponent’s temperament, but he intentionally chose to adopt aggressive language. The more he behaved in ways distant from the Imperial Tower’s dignity, the better he could conceal his identity.
Not bad. Felt good.
Meanwhile, the other members started chipping in with comments.
“How strange. I thought there was pressure.”
“Could it just be that the newcomer is stronger?”
“Still, it’s not good to draw attention from the get-go, is it? Standing out in a secret assembly is no good.”
Some members were confused, while others began to show interest. Ezekiel’s plan to settle in more visibly was smoothly progressing.
“Wicked self, clearly having exploited something, and yet, you dare show me this behavior? How dare you…!”
The antlered guy’s tightly clenched fists trembled.
Yet Ezekiel began to focus on another aspect.
Suddenly, the words of the Blue Tower elder Seina popped into his mind.
─You, a useless learner? Absolutely not! This virtual world will help in reality too. Training here will have some influence in the real world as well.
Seina’s hint was simple.
For example, when a lower-tier mage used intermediate magic in the virtual world, the sensation of handling intermediate magic would remain even after returning to reality.
─In this virtual world, a lower-tier mage can experience the intermediate magic realm. It’ll be a huge help when breaking their own limits later, right?
What about Ezekiel?
Would the experience of manifesting magic in a state where his body had changed be a tremendous help in reality as well?
He could always try it out, and there was no reason to hesitate.
At that moment, there was someone eager to fight.
─So, master, let’s make sure to use the ‘let’s fight’ feature later! It’s a one-on-one duel function, and the sense of realism is insane!
Seina added one more line.
─There are practice modes and serious modes. If you lose in serious mode, your persona will reset in the Black World… A huge penalty, right?
Then obviously, it had to be in serious mode.
Ezekiel quickly scanned the notification window.
Thinking he wanted to use the fighting feature was enough, and the notification jumped straight to the opponent.
“…?”
The antlered guy closely examined the notification window in front of him, then snorted in disbelief.
“…Let’s fight? Serious mode? Are you messing with me?”
“It seems like you’d want to.”
“How childish, but fine. I’ll do it if you want.”
The antlered guy immediately accepted the duel.
“A rat cornered will even try to bite a cat, right? It’s no lie; if you were crawling, you’d have gathered some crumbs of information by now.”
“…Why so chatty?”
“Bone, shut your mouth. No, you’ll be shutting it soon enough.”
Sssssssss─
As the surrounding environment changed, the duel began. The venue was a vast plain, with only the antlered guy and Ezekiel present.
‘First, shall I gently raise the chill?’
Ezekiel started manipulating the chill lightly.
Swish─
“Even though this is a virtual world, you know the sensation is identical to the real world, right? You cheeky─”
The endlessly yammering antlered guy suddenly froze.
“…”
He stood rigid.
But that didn’t mean he wasn’t moving. His body trembled unnoticeably but rapidly.
“Aah…”
And then came the antlered guy’s involuntary reaction.
Ezekiel found it all too familiar. It was the very sound he’d heard the most throughout his life.
Coldness.
The kind suffered by people writhing in pain from an excessive chill.
“…What? It ended with just the chill?”
Ezekiel muttered in disbelief.
He quietly approached and patted the antlered guy on the shoulder.
Shaking from the cold, but he didn’t react at all.
“Even wrapped in mana, you’re out of it.”
While regular folks easily freeze from even light chill, mages generally wrap themselves in swirling mana. It would be normal for them not to freeze so easily.
Sure, that would normally be the case.
Yet the antlered guy before him was frozen solid.
A self with a mage class specialized in mana manipulation had been ruthlessly overcome by Ezekiel’s chill.
“What, what, what…? What the heck…?”
The antlered guy mumbled, unable to comprehend.
The health bar hovering above his head was still plummeting at a terrifying pace.
Ezekiel calmly pressed the tip of one finger to the inner side of the antlered guy’s thumb and then brought it to his forehead. It was an act commonly referred to as a “slap” in everyday life.
“What else would it be?”
SLAP─!
With a clang, his head shattered.
“Your persona is nothing. Start from the beginning.”
An overwhelming victory. There was no particular excitement in his tone.
“…!”
Returning to the original environment after taking down the antlered guy, the eyes of the other members went wide in shock.
This was only natural. Even after the duel concluded, Ezekiel’s health bar was still completely full.
The atmosphere in the secret assembly hall changed in an instant.
First, they started avoiding Ezekiel’s gaze.
“Hmmm….”
“Wow! A real newcomer has joined us.”
He was all too familiar with the sight of those who had looked down on him suddenly changing their attitude. Ezekiel waved his hand impatiently.
“Enough with the pleasantries, let’s share information.”
“Still…”
“Still?”
As Ezekiel turned his head sharply, a beastman with a cat head took a few steps back.
“W-why are you glaring at me? We can’t start yet. The host hasn’t arrived!”
That speech was peculiar.
However, more unsettling than the manner of speaking was the word “host.”
“Host?”
“Y-yes.”
The beastman nodded. The other members began chiming in, affirming he was right.
“There’s a figure leading this secret assembly.”
“Who is it?”
“We don’t really know who they are, but they’re presumed to be the most amazing person in reality. The information they deal with inside the assembly is on a completely different level.”
“That’s right! Without that person, things wouldn’t run smoothly…!”
“Isn’t it amazing? They have profound knowledge of magic, and sometimes freely share information about the Imperial Family.”
Who could the host be?
And, while time was running out, when would they arrive?
While Ezekiel was pondering such trivial matters, suddenly…
CREAK─
The door swung open.
At the same moment, the members’ faces lit up.
“Ah, they’ve arrived!”
“Host, have you come?”
“We greet the host!”
And then.
Ezekiel was also rendered beautifully flabbergasted.
It was uncommon for Ezekiel to be flustered.
“That’s…”
But it couldn’t be helped.
The scene unfolding before him was shocking.
‘Isn’t that me?’
[ ‘Ezekiel’ has entered the secret assembly. ]
The individual appearing as the host of the secret assembly had completely replicated Ezekiel’s appearance while using the alias “Ezekiel.”
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