Chapter 3 - The Face of Oblivion

The abandoned practice room was a dusty haven, shrouded in the faint whisper of wind through the cracks in the window. There a boy huddled. He was still shivering. Still breathing as if his lungs were full of stones.

Footsteps echoed closer and closer. Leather shoes on marble. Drowned conversations behind the walls. Someone was looking for him. And he couldn't stay.

Panic clutched at his chest like an invisible fist. The magic still throbbed faintly in his veins, but he knew it wouldn't last. His mana... that precious spark of power that every magical being possessed... was almost depleted. It was barely a drop in a dry well.

-I need... I need to do something," he muttered, holding a hand to his face.

Then he remembered. The rules of the world he had hated. The ones that, as a reader, he knew bitterly. In that universe, each individual possessed a magical register. An internal interface accessible only to the owner. One had only to wish for it. One had only to ask for it.

And he wished.

A faint glow appeared in front of him. Ancient letters, golden, forming in the air. A floating panel, as if made of solid light. His Ability Record.

Name: Tokugawa Hideyoshi

Status: 2nd level student

Remaining Mana: 2%

Active Abilities:

- Mastery (I): Ability to mark an object or being under your possession. Requires magic contract. Cancelled due to lack of mana.

- Coercive Adaptation: (Passive) Increases magical pressure in dominated environments.

- Echo of Fear (Blocked)

Nothing new. Nothing useful. Nothing that could save him.

-It couldn't be... there had to be something else...

He mentally scrolled the interface, his will navigating between sealed options, inactive logs, unfulfilled mission stats. Sweat trickled down his forehead. His vision trembled. He no longer knew if it was exhaustion or fear.

And then, he saw it.

A sealed option, half-hidden under the category of survival. A faint glow accompanied it, as if the world itself was resisting anyone from seeing it.

Ability unlocked: Identity Replacement

Effect: Partially replaces your recognised identity. All documentation, notes, class records, and magical traces will be altered to a new randomly generated profile within the accepted Academy range. Your appearance will be slightly modified, eliminating hostile or notorious traits. This illusion will be maintained as long as you do not reveal your original identity or lose your entire mana pool.

Cost: 1% mana (minimum reserve required).

Warning: The memory of witnesses will not be altered. Only those who have no recent contact with you will accept your new face.

-An illusion...? Hide me? -he whispered. The thought turned her stomach. He didn't want to lie, didn't want to run away.

But he had no choice.

The footsteps were too close. The name "Hideyoshi" was already a sinking anchor. No one would listen to him. No one would believe him.

He reached out his hand for the option. He accepted it.

A shudder ran through his body. Not pain, but a sense of displacement. As if his skin, his bones, his energy were slowly shifting into a new form. It was not drastic. His height remained the same. His voice too. But his expression... his gaze... his eyes no longer resembled those of a criminal.

He was no longer the same. Not to the naked eye.

The panel disappeared.

The mana was reduced to a minimum. Barely a spark remained alive in his core.

He stood up. He walked towards the door. His steps were cautious now, measuring the silence, hiding among alien echoes.

A new identity. A new opportunity.

But in the reflection of the dark glass of the window, he knew the truth.

Tokugawa Hideyoshi still lived inside.

And all it took was one mistake for his shadow to devour him again.