There wasn't much that I knew about the penitentiary.

The location was undisclosed, and only a select few knew the exact coordinates of the place. Some speculated that it was located in the middle of an island while others speculated it was located inside a mountain range.

There were a lot of rumors about the place, but nobody knew the real location.

Wooom

I came out of the portal feeling a little wobbly.

It felt as though my organs had flipped over. Thankfully, nothing came out of that and I was able to recover rather quickly.

"....."

I looked up to stare ahead.

Before us a large wall loomed, stretching across several kilometers. At its forefront, imposing gates greeted our sight, flanked by stationed guards.

'So this is the entrance of the penitentiary.'

It was rather imposing.

"Follow along... Follow along..."

I never had the chance to properly admire them before the Professor's lethargic voice brought me back. Scratching his head, his eyes drooped slightly.

"Let's get you all registered..."

Scratching his hair, he just seemed tired of life.

I couldn't blame him. I was feeling the same way. Especially when I felt a pair of eyes burning holes at the back of my head.

I paused and looked back.

"Get over it."

"....."

"It was an accident."

"An accident?"

Aoife, who was glaring at me, clenched her teeth and finally spoke.

"Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"Sure you can. You tripped over your feet."

At that, Aoife's usual blank look showed signs of cracking. She appeared to be on the verge of losing it, but...

Taking a deep breath, she suppressed her anger and left.

"....."

I stared at her for a brief moment before tilting my head.

'She's definitely mad.'

But...

It was worth it.

"By the way..."

Her steps continued even as I spoke.

"....If you're scared, I can help you out agai-"

"Uht!"

She ended up tripping on her feet and losing balance. Just barely, she managed to keep herself from falling face flat and recovered rather quickly. Her head flicked back as she glared at me.

"I wasn't scared."

"Oh."

Sure she wasn't.

"Okay."

I nodded, ready to leave things be, when suddenly, I felt the back of my blazer get pulled, and her face appeared inches away from mine. Like a wild animal, she bared her teeth at me.

"I. was. not. scared."

Her teeth didn't open once as she spat those words out.

"Not."

Just then...

Almost faintly, I felt the corners of my lips pull.

".....if you say so."

"I say so."

Her face inched closer.

I nodded.

"Sure."

"I wasn't."

"Okay."

"Good."

"Perfect."

"Excellent."

Where was this conversation going? Perhaps realizing this too, Aoife finally let go and stepped back.

"Good that you know."

Then, acting as if nothing had happened, she proceeded to head into the penitentiary.

Of course, she didn't forget to add a few words before leaving.

"....Remember, I wasn't scared."

I stared at her back for a short moment before shaking my head and following from behind.

'Sure you weren't.'

That small incident aside, as soon as we passed through the gates, our bodies were subjected to a comprehensive check. I was stripped down to my underwear and thoroughly searched by the guards who used a device that scanned my entire body.

For obvious reasons, males and females were separated.

The process was rather quick and lasted less than several minutes. However, those short minutes felt like forever as I felt uncomfortable the entire time.

"Has everyone been checked?"

Another door greeted us the moment we stepped out of the checking room.

After doing a head check, the professor began to give a final speech.

"Behind me are the doors that lead to the lower security hall of the prison. It's where you all will be staying and guarding the place. Like I said before, try your best to minimize your contact with the inmates. They are not good people. Don't fall for their sweet temptations."

As he spoke, a guard stepped up and took out a large set of keys which he quickly inserted into the door.

Click!

It was sealed shut so I couldn't see what was behind it, but seeing the tense expressions the guards were making, I knew it was going to be something I wouldn't forget.

"For your first day, you won't need to do much."

As the door was getting unlocked, the Professor continued to give us instructions.

"All you have to do is get familiar with the place. The current area is called the Manticore Residential Area. It's where the Low-risk prisoners will be held. You are to not step outside of this zone."

Click Click!

"While you won't be in danger if you step out of the zone, there is still a risk that something might happen. We will not be held responsible for your safety if you wander around in areas you aren't supposed to be. Of course, we'll try to stop you from leaving, but if you somehow can go out undetected, if anything happens to you, then it's on you."

The Professor's eyes fell on each and every one of us before turning back to face the door which slowly started to open to reveal what was behind.

"....Welcome to Redknap Penitentiary."

"Huuuuuuu!"

As the door to the inmate's residential area swung open, a torrent of shouts and jeers engulfed us like a tidal wave.

"The rats are back!"

"Hahahaha, you fuckers aren't tired of seeing my face already?"

"Look! There's a bunch of kids behind them."

"Hahahaha."

Amidst the jeers and shouts, a palpable sense of intimidation settled in as the prisoners regarded us with eyes brimming with malice.

It felt rather discomforting. Especially when I started to become the subject of a few jeers.

"Hahaha, look at that pretty boy!"

"His face is stiff as a rock! Hahaha, he must be pissing his pants from fear."

"Been a while since I've seen such beautiful girls. Come to me. I'll let you have a great time. Kakaka."

The ones who seemed the most uncomfortable were the girls who showed looks of disgust.

Well, most of them...

There was one exception.

"Keke, look at these fuckers. They know a looker when they see one."

"...."

Kiera.

She was...

Enjoying this?

"Haha, little miss, why don't you come to my cell?"

"Pftt, please. Take a look at yourself dickhead. You look like an oversized ball sack."

"What did you call me?!"

"Kakaka."

Smacking her thigh, she started to laugh.

"Holy shit! I didn't think you could make yourself look ever worse than that, but here you are...! Kakaka."

Clank!

"You bitch!"

"...."

I tried my best to ignore her, but she really was a...

"Crazy bitch."

Thankfully, the Professor intervened.

"Don't rattle them. Your job is to keep them in line, not anger them."

".....T-ah."

Just then, she was about to click her tongue but stopped herself when realizing who she was talking to. I couldn't help but find her expression amusing as her face scrunched up as a result.

It looked like she had just eaten shit.

Snap Snap Snapping his fingers to gather our attention, the Professor spoke.

"You may disperse and start to familiarize yourselves with the surroundings. For now, your role won't be anything big. If you see any of the inmates starting a fight, it's your job to break it up. All of them have their mana sealed so it shouldn't be a problem for you to deal with them."

Or so he said. However, knowing what I knew, I didn't let my guard down and made sure to be on full alert the entire time.

"Alright, off you go. Wander around and familiarize yourself with the surroundings. If you have any problems come find me. I'll be at the guard station."

With a lazy wave of his hand, the Professor finally left.

"He's finally gone."

"Hey, do you want to team up with me?"

"Let's go."

From there, all the cadets went their own separate way. Most of them went in groups of four that they formed after the Professor's absence.

I was one of the only few who remained alone.

Well, it was something that I had expected and desired. I looked around me.

"For now, I need to get a better idea of my surroundings."

I planned to meticulously learn all the details of my surroundings. While I didn't know exactly where the escape was going to happen, every little bit of information helped.

In fact, there was something that I needed to prioritize before that.

There was a certain person that I wanted to meet.

That I had to meet.

"Heh."

'I wonder if he still remembers me.'

I wasn't sure. Back then, all of it happened due to the skill. I was still not sure whether the time I spent with him was something that he remembered.

Was the person I met his subconscious or just a manifestation of it? Something that the skill had created to mimic how he'd react?

I wasn't sure, but I was about to find out.

However, if he truly did remember, then...

"....It'll turn everything around."

***

After separating from the other cadets, Kiera walked around to monitor the area. It had been several hours since, and she was somewhat starting to get accustomed to the surroundings.

As she scanned the surroundings, a voice echoed.

"Look at you~"

A whistle followed.

"Come here and have some fun with me. I promise I don't bite."

It belonged to a skinny man with a buzz cut and sunken features.

".....Is that so?"

Kiera smiled as she neared one of the prison cells where the inmate appeared. Holding onto the bars, he brought his face closer.

"What do you say? I'm not bad, right?"

"I wonder."

Brushing her hair behind her ear, she leaned forward a little.

"I'm curious about something though."

"Oh?"

The inmate looked down slightly.

"Ask away. I'll tell you anything. Hehehe."

"How sweet of you~"

The current Kiera seemed like a stark contrast to how she usually was. Normally, she would've insulted them back or thrown a middle finger, but such wasn't the case at the moment.

"So, I was just curious... You are like the small dogs here, aren't you?"

"Small dogs?"

"Yeah, you know. The low-risk guys."

The prisoners were separated into three ranks. They were ranked depending on the severity of the crimes committed, and their general strength; Extreme-risk, High-risk, and Low-

risk.

"....Where are the really scary guys locked up?"

The face of the prisoner changed at the inquiry. No longer did he seem as keen to talk to her as he was before.

"Why are you asking about them?"

He almost seemed wary.

Kiera could even sense some lingering fear in his tone.

'As expected, he might know something...'

She hadn't selected him for no reason. Having talked with the other inmates, she more or less came to learn about the general hierarchy within the prison.

The inmate before her was an 'informant'. He was someone who knew a lot, and the exact person that Kiera was looking for.

"Dunno, I'm just curious. Heard a lot of stories about them before coming here."

".....I see."

He seemed to have bought that, but...

"Sorry, can't talk."

"You can't...?"

"Well..."

He glanced at her, the meaning of his gaze clear.

Kiera smiled and looked around her. Then, making sure nobody was looking, her hand flashed forward and reached for the inmate's shirt before she thrust it back and pulled him along.

"Hey, wa...!"

Bang!

A loud banging sound echoed. Several gazes fell on her the moment the sound echoed, and she returned them with a glare.

"What are you looking at?"

Only then did they look away and she returned her gaze to the inmate. She discussed it with the other guards, and so long as she had a proper reason, she could use some 'force' against the inmates.

So long as it wasn't excessive...

"Ukh... You!? What are you....!"

Her head reached into the cell again and she once again pulled.

Bang!

"Akh...!"

Drip... Drip!

Blood started to drip down from the inmate's nose as he looked up to Kiera.

"Wh!"

Bang!

He was never able to get a word out as each time she'd trust his head towards the bars.

Bang!

It went on for several times before his expression contained nothing else but fear.

"Huu... Hu..... Y-you..."

Her cold gaze bore down on him as she looked at him from above.

".....Looking at me doesn't come cheap, you know? Time for me to collect my payment."