“Dami, you’re out of your mind.”

“On the contrary, I actually think this is brilliant. This is the best possible place to gather man power.” Dami circled the desk the principal was sitting on to stare out the windows. The statue of what she referred to as a fake hero was standing proudly in front of the academy gates. A few months ago, she would not have believed that a person from a millennium ago was responsible for the chaos of the present world.

Kwon sighed and laid back into his seat. The other girls had never seen their principal behave like this. His eyes were gaut and he was basically a walking zombie.

“You’ve been preparing the academy heroes for this day no? Isn’t that the whole point of this ranking system?” Dami questioned without remorse. It wasn’t difficult to connect the dots together after she contemplated the notes from the files. The detective made her way back to the couch the others were sitting on and perched herself on the armrest.

“...Hmph, you were always too sharp for your own good, Dami.”

“Well, you were the one that raised me.” The principal finally cracked a smile at Dami’s smartass response.

“Yeah...” He observed the group of girls Dami brought along with her. Each had strengths and weaknesses that covered each other and he could see how his adopted daughter was comfortable with them. It made him happy to see that. “You put together a great team, Dami.”

“They’re my friends.” Dami said without missing a beat. Kwon was surprised by that but he quickly softened up.

“Alright, what’s the plan?”

As soon as those words left his mouth, Gahyeon stood up dramatically and teleported the biggest whiteboard Kwon had ever seen in his life. The board detailed several possibilities and battle formations. Pulling out a pair of fake glasses and putting it on her face, Gahyeon cleared her voice.

“Sun is obviously aiming for the last pillar to do his crazy so, we plan on bringing it here.” Gahyeon used a laser pointer to point out things on the board but she was getting too into her role that the laser just ended up pointing all over the place. Dami didn't hold back and slapped a palm to her face.

“Gahyeon, focus please.”

“Right.” Gahyeon cleared again and put on a serious look. “We can bring the last pillar here, as long as Jiu can get the Coven to approve of it. We gather all heroes here for a showdown.”

The principal is silent, unimpressed by their supposed master plan. And what exactly is the Coven? “Really? This is your grand plan?” He was expecting something greater like an ambush campaign or something of the sort.

“Sun will show up here no matter what.” Dami said with confidence. “This academy was founded upon his ideals and his image. Based on what we’ve seen from our encounters so far, he relishes in the dramatics and the symbolism of everything. He will definitely find a way to bring the pillar here even if the Coven is hiding it. And he will be expecting Dongie to be there to stop him.”

Kwon sighed and rubbed his face. “Yes, I agree. But what of the students’ lives-”

“This is what they’ve been training for. In fact, I think this will be a good wake up call for those who think that being a hero is all fame and no bite.” Siyeon said calmly. It irked her a bit that the principal was still on the fence about everything when there was literally a madman about to be unleashed on this world. Based on what Dami told her about the principal, it should be obvious that this was the best course of action. Those without the means to defend themselves would just be slaughtered and nothing would be accomplished.

“...”

“Why are you hesitating?” Handong stared directly into the principal’s eyes. “Is it because this paradise you built is going to be destroyed? Possibly forever?”

--

“That friend of yours is pretty scary.” Kwon said after he got off the phone with the Association. It seemed like Kang Jinwoo and several of his associates were caught. And it definitely cleared up the missing items from the hanger, namely the plane and the rare metals.

Dami smirked and crossed her legs. “Girlfriend, actually.” She was alone in Kwon’s office after sending everyone else back to the mansion to rest up.

“Girlfriend? Well well, little Dami has finally grown up.”

“She’s great. Got you to finally admit that you are a coward. If that isn’t girlfriend material, then I don’t know what is.” The detective quipped. Internally, Dami squealed at calling Handong her girlfriend.

“...She’s right, you know. I spent many years building up this academy in preparation for Sun’s return. But I got too comfortable and when the time has finally arrived, I find myself unable to let go.” Kwon laughed mockingly to himself. “It’s utterly foolish.”

“At least a couple of kids got you to finally open your eyes. Otherwise, it would have been a total disservice to Ryu Sera.”

At the mention of his old friend, his eyes softened in a way that Dami isn’t used to. “Yeah...I’m just sorry now that you kids have to put your lives on the line. Especially Lee Siyeon.” After hearing about their trump card in the form of a rank 1 student, to say that Kwon was shocked was an understatement. He never imagined that the safeguard could be right under his nose. It seemed that his system was severely flawed after all.

“...Ryu Sera never came back to tell you how bull this system is, did she?”