THE RISE OF WHITE CONQUEROR

Then Pope Lotario spoke. He told them there was no point in hiding anything. That he already knew all of their statuses. That resistance was pointless. And everyone believed him. Everyone... except Kei. Because the moment she looked at her own skills, she knew something was wrong. She will realise later she had the same skill as the Pope. No... not the same. Better. Far better.

And unlike the others, Kei had never been someone who blindly trusted what people told her. She had learned that lesson long ago. The world didn’t protect the weak. People didn’t help for free. And smiles... smiles meant nothing. Not after her father died. Not after her mother remarried. Not after learning, while still far too young, that a man who called himself family could look at her in ways that made her skin crawl. That a locked door didn’t always mean safety. That pretending to sleep sometimes kept you safer than screaming. From that day onward, Kei stopped believing in others. Authority, kindness, promises... they were all the same. Tools people used until they no longer needed you. So, Kei made a choice long ago. if the world was selfish, then she would survive by being even more selfish. Trust no one. Need no one. Depend on no one but herself.

She never believed the Pope and fortunately for her at that moment. The first skill she truly became familiar with was Magic Eyes. And strangely enough, unlike her other skills, which required time, effort, and repeated trial and error. Magic Eyes felt natural. Almost disturbingly so. As if the skill had always belonged to her. All she had to do was focus on it once, and information began flooding into her mind. Skill’s Functions, its limitations and its conditions. Everything. Even now, Kei still remembered the chill that ran down her spine when she realized the truth. Pope Lotario was wrong... or perhaps he was never telling the truth like she suspected. Because according to her skill, a status wasn’t something that could simply be "seen." Not truly. It had something to do with souls though even now she didn’t fully understand it. What she did understand, however was that if oneself is not even aware of their status how could someone else see their status meaning the pope was bluffing, he had no idea about their status when they themselves or more particularly when their souls itself wasn’t aware, and that her Magic Eyes were superior. Not only could she see the status of anyone whose soul wasn’t overwhelmingly stronger than hers... she could also hide her own. Alter it. Feed false information to anyone with the same ability.

And Kei had never been the type to waste an opportunity. The moment they first received their statuses, she noticed Pope Lotario’s attention was completely focused on Agawa. Naturally. The hero. The obvious centrepiece. And Pope Lotario, supremely confident in his own abilities, never once considered that one of the "children" standing before him might be capable of deceiving him. So, Kei took her chance... and lied. At the time, her control over Magic Eyes had been clumsy compared to now, almost embarrassing. If she possessed her current mastery back then, she could have hidden everything. Every skill. Every truth. But Kei wasn’t stupid. Hiding too much would only invite suspicion. So, she did what she thought was safest she hid only her two most dangerous skills. The Magic Eyes of Analysis. And... Matter. Even now, that S-rank skill remained a mystery. Unlike some of her lower-ranked skills that took a day or two to understand, Matter still refused to reveal its purpose no matter how much she tested it. Kelly had once jokingly thought of her as some kind of protagonist... and honestly, he wasn’t entirely wrong. Because in some ways... even Agawa couldn’t compare to her.

Which, looking back on it now, Kei realized had been the perfect choice. She had shown enough talent to stand out. Enough potential to attract attention. But not enough to reveal the truth. To everyone else, there were only three monsters in their class, three individuals blessed with limitless potential.

But the truth was...There had always been four. And Kei had made sure no one realized it. That was her greatest secret. A secret she hadn’t shared with anyone. Not her classmates. Not her so-called allies. Not even her two closest friends. Because Kei trusted no one completely. Not when skills like this existed. For all she knew, there could be someone with the ability to read minds.

Someone who could peel away lies as easily as breathing. And Kei had no intention of ever becoming vulnerable like that.

"...However..."

The words escaped her lips unconsciously, barely above a whisper.

"I’m pretty sure that woman... Apate..."

Kei’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"She knew."

It wasn’t a baseless suspicion. Kei had already figured out something important about her Magic Eyes. Just because someone’s soul strength was lower than hers... Didn’t automatically mean she could see their status. Strength mattered too. Raw, overwhelming strength. Even though Kei’s soul strength was superior to Pope Lotario’s... superior to William’s... even Joan’s...She still couldn’t see their statuses.

Not a single detail. At first, that had confused her. But after days of quietly observing, comparing, and testing. She had reached her own conclusion. Level. More specifically. Anyone above level one hundred. That had to be the threshold.

Because everyone below that...She could see. Without exception. Even the Deputy Knight Captain. Level ninety-nine. Had been completely visible to her. Which meant only one thing. Those three...Had already stepped into a realm beyond that.

And Apate, Kei’s fingers tightened unconsciously. Even thinking about that woman made her instincts scream.

Kei still remembered the confidence she had back then. The first time she met Apate, she had secretly activated her Magic Eyes without the slightest hesitation. By then, Kei already understood the limitations of her skill. With Pope Lotario, William, and Joan, even though she couldn’t see through them yet, she could still feel it, the faint resistance, the invisible veil surrounding their statuses. Kei knew that with enough mastery, enough growth, she would eventually tear through that veil. She was certain of it. But when she looked at Apate... there was nothing. No resistance. No veil. No hidden information waiting to be uncovered. Nothing at all. It was as if her skill had simply ceased to exist the moment it touched that woman. As if the concept of "analysing" her wasn’t even allowed.