KamiKowa: That Time I Got Transmigrated With A Broken Goddess
Chapter 95: [95] The End of the Beginning

Chapter 95: [95] The End of the Beginning

October 7, 2:41pm

Captain Bennett led the class down a set of metal stairs that hugged the mountainside. They descended in single file, with Xavier keeping close to Calypso. The stairs creaked under their weight, each step bringing them closer to the gate’s depression.

"Stay behind the safety line," Bennett instructed as they reached the bottom. A yellow line had been painted in the dirt about three meters from the gate’s perimeter.

Xavier studied the gate from this new vantage point. Up close, the distortion seemed more substantial, like a tear in fabric revealing another layer beneath. The air around it shimmered slightly, creating a heat-haze effect.

"Now that we’re closer, try to sense the gate’s Essentia signature," Professor Valdez instructed. "Close your eyes and focus."

Xavier closed his eyes, concentrating on the faint energy emanating from the gate. It felt... wrong somehow. Unlike the warm pulse of human Essentia, the gate’s energy was cold and alien, prickling against his skin like static electricity.

"It feels like pins and needles," Margaret whispered nearby.

"More like ice water," Ashley countered.

Xavier watched as students spread out around the gate’s perimeter, keeping behind the safety line. From his position, he could see others through the gate’s distortion. Their forms appeared stretched and warped, colors slightly off, as if viewing them through flawed glass.

"Hey, look at Kyrie through the gate," Luka called out, pointing. "His head is huge!"

Kyrie’s distorted image indeed showed his head enlarged to comical proportions while his body appeared squashed. Several students laughed.

"Very mature," Kyrie muttered.

"Check out Beppo," Naomi said. Through the distortion, Beppo’s normally tall frame appeared curved like a question mark.

Beppo immediately positioned himself to capture the effect. "This is gold! Distortion selfie!"

Xavier moved slowly around the perimeter, studying the gate from different angles. The distortion effects changed depending on viewing position. From one side, people appeared stretched vertically; from another, they seemed compressed horizontally.

Dr. Wilson approached with a handheld device. "We’re getting some interesting readings today," she said to Professor Valdez. "Slightly higher dimensional pressure than usual."

"Is that concerning?" Valdez asked.

"Not necessarily. Gates often show minor fluctuations."

Xavier glanced at Calypso, who stood transfixed, staring into the gate’s center. Her normally animated face had gone still, her pink eyes wide.

"Calypso?" he said quietly, moving closer to her.

She blinked, seeming to return to herself. "Sorry. It’s just... there’s something about this gate."

"What do you mean?"

Before she could answer, Nolan approached them, his thick glasses reflecting the gate’s shimmer.

"The dimensional mathematics here are fascinating," he said, his stutter notably absent as he focused on the technical aspects. "The distortion follows a non-Euclidean pattern that suggests—"

He was interrupted by Beppo, who had positioned himself to take a group photo. "Everyone gather around! Say ’gates are great’!"

Several students groaned but complied, arranging themselves with the gate as backdrop.

"Is this really appropriate?" Ashley asked, though she moved into frame.

"Documenting field research is essential," Beppo insisted.

Xavier stood at the edge of the group, keeping one eye on the gate. Something about it bothered him, though he couldn’t pinpoint what.

"Come on, Xavier," Margaret called. "You’re half out of frame."

He reluctantly stepped closer as Beppo counted down. "Three, two, one..."

The camera flashed, capturing the class with the gate behind them. Through the lens, Xavier noticed something odd—a darker spot in the center of the distortion that hadn’t been visible before.

"Did you see that?" he asked Calypso.

"See what?"

The monitoring equipment around the gate began to emit a series of beeps. Dr. Wilson hurried to check the readings, her expression shifting from professional interest to concern.

"Captain Bennett," she called, "dimensional pressure is increasing. Up to 0.47 and rising."

Bennett immediately stepped forward. "Everyone back to the stairs. Now."

A loud crack split the air. The gate’s distortion rippled violently, and the dark spot expanded outward like spilled ink.

"Containment failure!" Dr. Wilson shouted. "The field is collapsing!"

Professor Valdez pushed students up the stairs. "Move! Everyone up now!"

Xavier and Calypso had only taken a few steps when the gate made a sound like glass shattering. The distortion expanded suddenly, growing from its original size to many times larger in seconds. The air filled with what looked like black snow—tiny dark particles that floated and swirled around them.

"Run!" Xavier shouted, pushing Calypso ahead of him.

The black particles began to move with purpose, swirling faster and creating a vortex centered on the gate. The pull grew stronger, drawing loose dirt and pine needles toward the distortion.

Naomi, who had been near the front of the group, suddenly lost her footing. "Help!" she screamed as she slid backward toward the gate.

Alexander lunged for her, catching her hand, but the force pulled them both. Margaret grabbed Alexander’s jacket, trying to anchor him, but she too was dragged toward the expanding gate.

"Hold on!" Ashley shouted, creating a golden light around her arm as she reached for Margaret. Her Guardian Covenant ability activated, trying to absorb the pulling force, but it wasn’t enough.

Nolan, who had been quietly observing nearby, was yanked off his feet without warning, his glasses flying off as he tumbled toward the gate.

The black particles swirled more violently, creating a howling wind that drowned out the shouts and screams. Xavier watched in horror as one by one, his classmates were pulled into the expanding distortion—Naomi first, still wearing his jacket, then Alexander, Margaret, Ashley, and Nolan, their forms stretching grotesquely as they disappeared into the darkness.

"Xavier!" Calypso screamed as the force caught her too, pulling her backward.

Xavier lunged, catching her wrist with one hand while grabbing onto a metal support pole with the other. The pull was immense, threatening to tear his arm from its socket.

"Don’t let go!" she cried.

"I won’t!" he shouted back, his fingers white-knuckled around the pole.

Professor Valdez rushed toward them, her hair crystallizing with frost as she activated her ice abilities. She drove spikes of ice into the ground, anchoring herself as she reached for Xavier.

"Take my hand!" she yelled over the howling wind.

Xavier strained, trying to maintain his grip on both Calypso and the pole. The metal groaned under the pressure, beginning to bend. Professor Valdez stretched further, her fingers brushing the sleeve of Xavier’s henley.

"Almost there!" she shouted.

Her fingers closed around the fabric just as the metal pole tore free from its mounting. Xavier felt himself falling backward, still clutching Calypso’s wrist. Professor Valdez held tight to his sleeve, her ice spikes cracking under the strain.

With a ripping sound, the sleeve tore away in Valdez’s hand. Xavier and Calypso tumbled through the air toward the gate’s dark center. The last thing Xavier saw was Professor Valdez’s face, her expression changing from determination to horror as they were pulled into the darkness.

『Hunters! Welcome to the Gate of Frostfall!』