The Academy's Time Looper

As Athen's mind began to slow and descend into complacency, his pupils froze, giving up on resisting whatever force had trapped him in this void.

Maybe...being here wasn't so bad.

The outside world was so full...of challenges...and work.

Entering the academy was just the first step in Athen's arduous journey ahead.

From here, he would have to excel in magic when... he had just seen it for the first time a couple of hours ago.

Not to mention, he was at risk of being kicked out of the academy and possibly being imprisoned at any time if someone found out the truth of his admission.

After successfully graduating from the academy, which would be a miracle in itself, Athens would have to find a well-paying job.

But was that it?

Nope!

Every day, for at least ten years, Athen would have to work at his acquired job to earn money to survive.

Finally...after that, he would be able to retire with a shit load of money, right?

If...he didn't die of boredom and depression first.

It was one thing after another with no heaven in sight, simply more hellish hours of work.

What was the point of it all?

However...in this pitch-black void, none of that mattered.

Wealth, money, political power...they were nonexistent.

Closing his eyes, Athen allowed his chaotic mind to come to a halt as if he were preparing to fall asleep.

Athen...he was happy here, wasn't he?

Why was he trying to do all this work for happiness and freedom by entering the academy...when it was right here, in this pitch-black void, just waiting for him?

His mind was at peace here, and his worries were dissipating with each passing second.

How am I going to escape!?

How am I going to survive the punishment for using my ability?

How am I going to enter the academy without being caught?

None of that mattered to Athen anymore.

As Athen clung to his last piece of consciousness, his figure began to descend deeper and deeper into the pitch-black void.

Oblivious to the movement of his own body, Athen let himself go, accepting the feeling of relaxation and leisure that had somehow crept into his body.

But, just as Athen's last thought disappeared, his eyes suddenly flickered open as he felt a gust of wind rushing against his face, as if he were a dog with his head out of the window.

*WHOOSH*

*WHOOSH*

Angry that something had dared to interrupt his state of tranquility and pure peace, Athen immediately opened his eyes.

However, to his shock...and displeasure, the scenery around him...wasn't a pitch-black void.

It was somehow worse.

As Athen's pupils reached the top of his eyes, his mind suddenly began racing with countless thoughts, reawakening from its slumber back in the pitch-black void.

Above him lay...what could barely be called a sky.

The normal pure-blue sky was drenched in blood-red color, making it seem as if the atmosphere itself was...bleeding.

Blending right in, a moon, colored a mix of dark red and magenta, came into view, shining right down on Athen.

Lowering his pupils, Athen examined his surroundings, noticing how the moon cast an ominous and murderous aura down with its dark red color.

Athen's figure seemed to be sitting down and leaning against something while looking up, as even when his pupils were at their lowest, Athen was unable to see his own body.

Refocusing on his surroundings, Athen could only describe his current line of sight... as a battleground.

No...that was far too nice.

A purge?

No.

It was the end of the world.

Mountains of body, all unrecognizable to Athen, lay to his left and right, and the fields of grass around him were painted blood-red.

The rocks, various machinery, bodies, and hundreds of flipped-over carriages around Athen had only one thing in common.

Blood-red.

One body even lay next to Athen...its pale skin covered in debris, and... its body had a gigantic hole, big enough to fit a basketball through, in its stomach.

Beyond that, Athen could see rivers of light-red lava, accompanied by clouds of smoke that seemed to stretch up to the sky.

The entire terrain was flat, with no buildings or any marks of civilization left standing.

Unfortunately...or fortunately in this case, Athen couldn't see most of the terrain below as his head was angled upwards, and of course, he was unable to move it.

As his mind ran wild, trying to comprehend how he had been transported to this doomsday-like scene, a sudden sound echoed through the previously silent space.

*CLAP*

*CLAP*

Interrupting Athen mid-thought, "his" head suddenly moved, looking downwards at its own body.

And then's when Athen realized.

Athen wasn't Athen...right now.

A pair of battered legs entered his visions, half of it covered in the iron armor while the other half was burned to a crisp, colored a pitch-black.

Without any input from Athen, the body suddenly jerked, causing the mouth to suddenly open and spit out blood on the floor below.

And as Athen gazed at the puddle of blood below, seeing the body's reflection, his mind halted.

The figure seen in the reflection was a completely different person than Athen.

Having a pure-white beard alongside countless scars on his face, the figure seemed to be at least fifty years old.

But, what was most concerning of all was the tennis-ball-shaped hole in the figure's throat, which Athen could clearly see in the blood's reflection.

Yet...Athen felt no pain.

It was as if he were a spectator in this scene, simply observing from the bearded figure's point of view.

Not giving Athen any time to think or react, a sudden voice sounded from what seemed like only a couple of meters away.

"You've managed to survive? Impressive."

Again, without any commands from Athen, the figure's head suddenly moved upwards and in the direction of the voice.

Only a couple meters ahead of Athen lay a figure with two pitch-black wings protruding from his back alongside a ghostly grin.

Nearing Athen's current body, which refused to move no matter how much he commanded it to, the figure leaned downwards, making eye contact.

"Unfortunately, this is the end. With you, the human race is officially exterminated."

Pausing for a moment, the winged figure suddenly raised his hands and excitedly said,

"Oh! I've heard humans use this phrase a lot! Any last words?"

"I'm Timeless."