I don't think we are in easy mode anymore.

Jake's eyes widened in horror as he looked down at the dagger I had stabbed right into his heart.

Reminiscent of the last mannequin I had killed in the previous room.

"Why... Didn't we already win?"

I gave him a gentle smile and lowered his body back to the ground.

"It's simple really. You are a really smart person, you have already marked me as a threat and would have been a really strong competitor in the future."

"You see, the key to this game wasn't any stupid guessing game where you tried to find out the impostor among us."

"There is a very simple strategy to clearing this game."

"Just kill everyone else in the room. The impostor is bound to be one of them."

"Other ways to win was to get lucky, or have superior intellect skills to everyone else in the room and finding the imposter in the first go."

"But the most likely scenario would involve one person killing everyone else in a show of superior skill, intellect and decisiveness."

"Do you understand what I am trying to say here?"

I took another glance at Jake's body.

Jake "…"

"Oh, he's dead…"

I kneeled down next to him and shut his eyelids.

"Even though you cannot hear me anymore, let me finish the explanation."

"Ever since the moment I read the note, I had already decided to kill everyone else in this room."

"First of all, the scenario where the imposter was the second to die while injuring the survivor was the most likely to happen."

"The true candidate would be much more motivated in killing the other person.

Meanwhile, the imposter would find me the most dangerous and would instinctively keep trying to push me to death first. The difference in mentality matters a lot when placed in critical scenarios."

"Whether you won or Steve did. Whether you were the impostor or he was. The conclusion would have been the same."

"I would kill the survivor once they let their guard down"

"The academy calls us hero candidates, but the nature of this test was clearly a battle royale."

"It isn't a stretch to assume that I would often need to face other candidates as my opponents in the future, eliminating strong competitors before they can bloom is only natural"

"More importantly, I do not like leaving witnesses when killing people."

"Call it an occupational habit if you will. You had seen too much. You know too much about my true self and methods of operation. It's nothing personal. I hope you don't mind it."

Jake "…"

"I am glad you understood"

Jake "…"

Satisfied with my explanation turned monologue, I got to my feet and stretched my body.

"Of course, there was the possibility that someone might go crazy and just shoot me first, or someone might manage to figure out the holes in my plan before I got to implement it."

"No matter how sly one is at crafting conspiracies, there are always risks one has to undertake…"

"Pfft, what a joke. I had obviously analyzed their personalities before putting my plan into motion. From the start to the end I led the flow of the conversation and the thinking patterns of everyone in the room. There was no chance of failure from the very start."

"After all, I am none other than Nathair Venenon. The unstoppable venomous snake of the business world."

*DING!*

A beeping sound came from the black sphere in the middle of the room.

I turned to find that it had spit out another paper and an object that looked like a mask with it.

(Congratulations on being the sole survivor of the test!

Since you took an active role in killing the others and have understood the true philosophy behind the test, the academy has decided to give you a present to help you in your future endeavours.

Item name: Mask of Enigma

Item use: Helps hide true identity from other students and instructors.

Item description: A mask made for those who prefer to stay incognito.

HINT: It is advisable to wear the mask at all times while in the academy.

We hope that you find our present to your liking.

Wishing you the best for your performance in the academy.

'Heros victor evadet')

Once again, the letter burst into flames as I finished reading it.

These guys really don't like leaving behind evidence, do they?

I picked up the piece of cloth. It was a half-face mask that covered up everything above the nose while leaving space for the eyes. The minimalistic design and all-black colour scheme fit right in with the rest of the combat suit.

I brought the mask to my face and wore it as recommended.

Since the organizers had mentioned that it will come in handy, there must be a disadvantage in revealing your face and identity to others.

I picked up my weapons and put them back at my waist and walked out of the room without giving the corpses a second glance.

.

.

.

When I came to, I found myself on the middle of a translucent platform floating mid-air, or was it mid-cosmos? There were about a hundred people on my platform, and there were thousands of platforms floating around me for miles around me.

Most of the platforms were floating at the lowest level, the one on which I was at.

There were 4 levels above mine, with each level having exponentially fewer platforms compared to the ones below them.

The highest level having only 5 platforms in total.

All the platforms were arranged in a circular manner floating in the middle of what could only be described as 'the void'.

At the centre, there was a big platform, at the centre of which was a dark shadowy figure whose true form could not be discerned.

Just by looking at it, I could tell that it was an existence on a completely different level of existence as me.

As if I were a mere mortal, and it was a god.

It drew the attention of everyone towards him, and soon everyone was absolutely still, standing in attention, waiting for the otherworldly being to grace us with its words.

I couldn't remember how and when did I come to this platform.

One moment I was stepping out the door after wearing the mask and the next moment I was here.

With the number of common sense defying events that I had experienced so far, I wasn't even surprised anymore.

*SCREECH*

The sound of static feedback filled the air followed by the voice which seemingly belonged to the being in front of us.

"Hello... mike testing... 1 2 3. Hello there. Can you all hear me?"

Everyone "…"

"Ah, I forgot I wouldn't be able to hear your responses anyway. It seems that you all can hear me though."

Everyone "…"

"First of all, I would like to welcome everyone to the annual opening ceremony of the Yggdrasil hero academy which is held every cosmic year. To those that have survived, Congratulations! You are one step closer to graduation and becoming a transcendent. To those who lost their lives in the process, your sacrifices will be remembered."

"I am the Principal of the academy, 'The one who seeks salvation'. Friends can call me Joe. To the rest of you, don't try it."

"Like always, I will begin by giving an introduction of the academy to our clueless little first years."

"The Yggdrasil or world tree is the existence that binds all the worlds of our multiverse together and shelters it from hostile forces all over the 5th dimension."

"Unfortunately, the world tree has been injured and our multiverse is under attack by the 'Demon God of annihilation' and the multiverse under its control."

"A multiverse is just a collection of universes parallel to each other, following a common theme of existence and the same core rules of reality. It is a 4th-dimensional realm.

The 5th dimension is a collection of multiverses with similar core rules of reality. It is thus common for multiverses within the 5th dimension to wage war for land and resources.

Unfortunately, most of the multiverses around us have already fallen to the grasp of the evil demon god infamously referred to as 'The Final Calamity' as he leaves nothing but destruction in its wake."

"But fear not, all hope is not lost. At the core of the world tree, we have a fragment of the true 'holy sword', the only weakness of the demon god."

"But in order to wield the holy sword, we need a hero worthy of it."

"All the transcendent of the multiverse decided to unite together to found the Yggdrasil Hero Academy."

"For the salvation of the multiverse, we will raise a hero that will lead us all to victory."

"The motto of our academy is – 'Heros Victor Evadet', which on direct translation means 'The hero will emerge victorious'."

"But what it truly means is that 'he who emerges victorious, is the hero'."

"Every year, only 10 students get to graduate from the academy."

"The rest all die."

"Only by climbing on the corpses of your comrades and forging yourself in blood, sweat and tears will we get a hero that can kill the demon god and give salvation to our multiverse."

"For the future and our continued existence."

"HEROS VICTOR EVADET!!!"

As if waiting for this single instance, everyone in the upper-level platforms started yelling together in a collective frenzy.

HEROS VICTOR EVADET!!!

It was a cry full of passion, madness and fury.

HEROS VICTOR EVADET!!!

One full of desperation, agony and determination.

HEROS VICTOR EVADET!!!

Their voices seemed to break through the still and unfeeling void, as if resonating with the fundamental fabric of reality itself.

HEROS VICTOR EVADET!!!