SCIAW: Chapter 553/554

Chapter 553: The Story Hasn't Officially Begun Yet

"What kind of story is it?"

"A general overview? Or a little more detailed?"

Ren offered the choice.

"Let's start with a general overview."

Sonoko immediately chose the general overview, and the others nodded in agreement.

Ren nodded slightly, then began a simple explanation:

"A group of high school students who have lost their social living space carry out a series of thefts against adults in society who are overly greedy."

"By stealing the excessive desires of others, they are brought back from being out of control to normal. And the high school students' final challenge is the entire society, or rather, the deity itself that seeks to imprison all humanity."

"In summary, it is high school students, salvation, the world."

Everyone was pondering the summarized content. Of course, the last sentence was directly omitted by them. "A group of high school students who have lost their social space?"

Kaguya seriously considered the meaning of this sentence.

"So, does it mean those who are squeezed by society to the point of having no living space?"

Ren nodded slightly.

"Mm. Losing social space means that. But a more specific meaning is that everything around you has made you lose everything, to the point that even asking for help becomes a luxury. You are a person isolated in this world."

Kaguya nodded slightly, having understood the meaning of this sentence.

"High school students losing social space means being ostracized by classmates in school, disliked by teachers, and even having their own living space deprived, leading to these students initiating a rebellion."

"That is about it."

After receiving confirmation from Ren, Kaguya somewhat understood what kind of story this was.

"It looks like this should be a story where the protagonist continuously grows stronger, layer by layer, until they are strong enough to fight against a god."

"However, a group of high school students is enough to face a god? Isn't the scope of such a story too broad?"

"My point is, are gods that easy to deal with?"

Kaguya was not entirely clear on what kind of being a god truly was, but she knew someone who should.

Everyone's gaze involuntarily shifted to Ren.

Everyone knew that the answer to this question could only come from him.

Ren shook his head slightly.

"While I would love to give everyone a clear answer, the god in that story is not a true god. It is more of a god-like entity created under the influence of desire. It probably has not reached the level of a god. Perhaps it is only a Sequence 2 or Sequence 1, and definitely not a Sequence 0."

"But even so, defeating a god-like entity is by no means an easy task."

This answer did not exceed Kaguya's expectations.

Just as she said, defeating a god is definitely not an easy task. Even if that god is only a god-like entity, it still holds true.

"The shortcut path that I and Mouri took allows us to reach the height of a demigod. Subsequent promotions will become much more difficult."

"So, when facing a Sequence 2 or even Sequence 1 god-like entity, reaching Sequence 4 is already our maximum limit."

Ren nodded slightly. Kaguya's conjecture was correct. This was the highest level that could be reached during the decisive battle.

But even at this highest level, facing such god-like entities or false gods would still be extremely arduous.

The gap of a single Sequence level is already very large, especially in the higher Sequences, where this difference becomes even greater.

"Just as you said, it is not entirely without a chance."

"As things stand, there is at least another year. And that year will bring quite a significant improvement for us."

"After all, our growth, besides our own efforts and acting, comes from the diary."

Ren offered some comfort, while also explaining the current situation.

"Is there an option to avoid it?"

Sakuya raised an objection.

To this, Ren merely shook his head slightly and explained why there was no option to avoid it.

"Aizawa, that god-like entity wants to dominate all of humanity. Do you think we can avoid it?"

"...No, I guess not."

If it targets the entire human world, then it is clear the opponent will not give humanity any possibility of escape.

They could only choose to face it.

Sakuya observed the emotions on Ren's face, then asked:

"Ren, do we have a chance to win?"

"Yes, and the chances are not small."

Ren was very certain of this. He had a certain confidence to face this hidden god-like entity.

"Isn't there the protagonist of the original story?"

"While we are getting stronger, they can also use their power to achieve some accomplishments."

Everyone's eyes lit up.

"Also, if I am not mistaken..."

Ren spoke his conjecture while taking out a maple leaf gold coin from Sefirah Castle.

Akira Kurusu exists.

Then he flicked the maple leaf gold coin with his thumb.

The coin landed in his palm, face up.

"It seems my guess is correct."

"That traitor exists, and that male protagonist, Akira Kurusu, also exists."

Akira Kurusu, this name also appeared in everyone's minds.

"So, are we looking for someone?"

Chika immediately became interested.

"There is indeed a need for that."

Ren nodded slightly, then took off his glasses and pointed to his own face.

"Just look for someone with my face. If I am not mistaken, he should have the same face as me. But right now, he should be about to go to prison."

The story begins in the spring of April, but the true pieces were set half a year, or even half a year before that.

It is already late April, which means there are only about two months until Akira Kurusu is sent to prison. This is the fate he must bear.

And this is also a very good opportunity for Ren.

He had been wondering before if the acting of high Sequence would require a ritual.

Although he was not sure if this ritual was necessary, it certainly would not hurt to make some preparations beforehand.
"Eh? The same face as Ren?"

Seeing the surprised Chika, Ren began to explain.

"The world is so big, people with the same appearance are not entirely nonexistent."

"So, Chika, I will trouble you with finding him."

(To be continued.)

Chapter 554: Pure Stereotype

"Hmm, if that's the case, I'll have to start working harder too."

The previous topic was quite serious, and Hinagiku could clearly sense the danger behind it.

At this moment, she also began to yearn for power.

After all, this is a struggle from which there is no retreat.

"Hinagiku, I think you're already working hard enough normally, you don't need to push yourself further."

Nagi immediately stopped Hinagiku's idea.

"Your usual workload and exercise intensity are already very high. Continuing to push yourself could easily affect your health."

"Besides, the path you're on now is Sequence, which is different from the path I, Shinomiya, Hayasaka, and Mouri are on. We need more exercise, while you need more acting."

Differences in paths also mean differences in the direction of effort.

For those who embark on the Path of Sequence, acting is key, while exercise is not the most crucial aspect.

"That's right, for those who embark on the Path of Sequence, besides daily self-training, acting is the key to growth."

Ren also strongly agreed with Sanzenin's judgment. Those who walk the Path of Sequence have slightly different training methods from others.

"Although the amount of self-training is not small, Katsura's daily training is already sufficient in terms of intensity. It's enough to simply incorporate the use of extraordinary abilities into your daily training."

"I see."

Hinagiku nodded slightly, making a mental note of this.

The lawyer's ability is actually quite useful. Even if it's only a Sequence 9 ability, it helps her daily work a lot.

"Besides acting, another key is naturally the potion for promotion."

Acting and promotion.

These two points are the key elements of the Path of Sequence.

Acting requires daily effort, while the conditions for promotion are relatively singular, the diary.

"It can only rely on the diary."

Hinagiku thought for a moment. It seemed that the potions for promotion could only be obtained through the diary, making this promotion condition relatively singular.

"If you want to get the potion through the diary, then you need to appear in Amamiya's diary."

"It seems the number of times we go out together on weekends will increase significantly in the future."

"Actually, it's not just weekends."

Ren gave Hinagiku a reminder about the diary rules.

"It can also be things that happen around you, especially significant events. If they are recorded in the diary, the benefits Miss Katsura can receive will increase with the weight of the content."

"So, besides weekend trips, Katsura can also pay attention to major events happening at Hakuo Academy. For example, events like the school festival, if you invite us to participate, can also be recorded to a great extent in the diary."

"Especially since Katsura is the only one among all of us at Hakuo Academy right now, I think if you receive an invitation, it should bring Katsura a great surprise."

So there was this trick.

Hinagiku thought for a moment, then recalled an upcoming event at Hakuo Academy.

"Speaking of which, the biggest event at Hakuo Academy recently should be the Hakuo Academy Sports Festival."

But then she shook her head helplessly.

"This is a sports festival that only internal students can participate in. Even if people from outside the school come to watch, there's not much fun in it."

The sports festival had a lot of participation for students within the school, but for those who came to watch, it was almost completely uninteresting.

"The sports festival is indeed uninteresting."

Nagi pouted, thinking about Hakuo Academy's sports festival, which was almost devoid of interest, at least from a spectator's perspective.

"Participating is one thing, but spectating is another."

Sakuya also strongly agreed with this.

She had participated before. She could only say that the sports festival was large in scale, but its entertainment value was just so-so.

"Compared to the sports festival, the cultural festival is more interesting."

The sports festival, as its name suggests, is a collective sports gathering held for students within the school.

The cultural festival, on the other hand, is a festival opened to the public in the name of the school to promote school culture, student quality, and abilities.

In terms of activities, the cultural festival has many more, and it also lasts for two or three days.

"Mhm."

Hinagiku nodded slightly. She also understood that the cultural festival activities would definitely be better.

"Katsura, did you go skiing this morning?"

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Ren very stiffly and directly changed the subject. He genuinely wanted to know if the others had gone skiing that morning.

"Yes, Nagi, Miss Isumi, and Miss Sakuya and I went out together."

"Eh?"

Ren looked at Sanzenin with slight surprise.

"Sanzenin can ski."

"Mhm."

Hinagiku knew this was a pure stereotype, but she also understood why Nagi would give people such a stereotype.

"Nagi's athletic talent isn't actually bad. Most of the time, she's just too lazy to move, and coupled with her weak body, she hasn't shown it."

"After gaining Element Power, she often flies around in the sky using Element Power, and maintaining balance has become second nature to her. So, with the assistance of Element Power, skiing is absolutely no problem."

Just as Hinagiku finished explaining, Nagi, who was playing games, already had her eyes narrowed, her gaze fixed directly on Ren.

"So, this is the stereotype I give people?"

Ren, for his part, broke out in a cold sweat.

"Cough, cough, it's just that I haven't seen you ski in the story, so I thought you were like me in that regard. It's not a stereotype, just a deduction based on past circumstances."

"Isn't that just a stereotype?"

That one sentence completely froze the atmosphere, because Ren realized it really was a stereotype.

Nagi looked at the completely frozen Ren. She smiled, took a game controller and another one, and walked straight to him, motioning with her lips.

"???"

"Idiot. Spread your legs, I want to sit."

"...Oh."

Belatedly, Ren spread his legs. Nagi took the opportunity to sit down, just like sitting on a sofa, holding the controller and leaning back casually.

"Here."

The other controller she was holding was also handed to Ren behind her.

"As an apology for stereotyping me, I'll let you play games with me this afternoon."

Ren, who took the controller, looked at the game on the TV screen, Snow Bros, a two-player game option.

Although it was an infinite level type, it could be played through one round.

The game was quite old, but the gameplay was still pretty good, and it was a cooperative two-player game, so the feeling of playing alone and playing with two people was different.

Hmm, when playing with two people, it mainly comes down to who screws over whom.

Without a doubt, Ren believed he was the one who would screw over the other.

"Alright. As long as you don't think I'm a pain."

(To be continued.)