Reincarnated as the Only Male in an All-Girls Magic Academy!
Chapter 45: Unbearable Agony!

Chapter 45: Unbearable Agony!

The glow from the watch’s display bathed Ren’s face in a pale sheen, but the light wasn’t what made his eyes sparkle like twin stars on caffeine.

His grin stretched so wide it looked like it might break his face, and for someone usually composed and calm, even suspiciously so, he was practically trembling with uncontainable joy.

His fingers hovered over the watch as if afraid the screen might vanish, like it was a mirage conjured by his imagination.

He leaned closer, reading the rune’s description one more time, as if trying to carve every word into his brain like sacred scripture.

[Special Ability: Momentum Creation

The Kinephantom Panther no longer just transfers existing momentum; it can now spontaneously generate bursts of kinetic energy within its own body.

This allows for explosive acceleration from a standstill, mid-air direction changes that defy physics, and strikes that carry far more force than its physical strength would suggest. It can essentially "create" push or pull forces on itself.]

"...What the hell," Ren breathed out, voice thin and shaky.

This wasn’t just better than the old Phantom Panther. This was in a league of its own!

The Stage 2 Phantom Panther rune had been impressive with its ability to absorb momentum, which already let it bounce energy around like a living pinball of violence.

Ren had thought that was insane enough when he first discovered it, after all, who wouldn’t want an ability that could turn being punched into fuel for a backflip kick?

But the Kinephantom Panther rune didn’t just transfer momentum anymore, it made it. It didn’t have to wait to get hit or hit something first. It could just... go!

Spontaneous bursts of kinetic force.

Explosive acceleration from a full stop.

Mid-air movement corrections like it was glitching gravity!

Ren’s analytical mind snapped into gear like someone hit the ignition switch on a rocket ship.

He didn’t even realize he had started pacing in small, excited circles in the chamber, muttering like a madman.

"If I can accelerate without an impact, then I can use it to control my air trajectory even after a jump," he said to himself, eyes widening.

"If I attach it to a kusarigama strike, I can delay the force and make it hit harder after the swing starts. Oh my god, I can fake a miss and then whip the force into it afterward.

"Or wait, wait! I can cancel my own motion mid-air, redirect it, and double-back like a heat-seeking boomerang!"

He spun toward the red evolution crystal, holding up the scroll like it was a divine artifact.

"Do you realize what this means?!" he whispered to no one, still grinning like a lunatic.

"It’s not just fast, it’s insanely unpredictable. This thing isn’t bound by physics anymore, it laughs at physics!"

He paused, then did a little bounce on his heels and clapped once, actually clapped.

He, Ren, who had once argued in a calm tone about the beauty of mathematical symmetry, had just done a giddy one-man applause.

"I’m gonna be so annoying in battle," he giggled, absolutely feral.

And then, like someone flipping a switch, Ren calmed.

The smile remained, just a touch more composed now, but his eyes had that sharp glint again.

That quiet, thinking glint. The kind that made scientists back on earth nervous because it meant something ridiculous was about to happen.

He gently slipped the scroll-form rune back into the red evolution crystal.

The crystal accepted it with a flash of red and a low hiss as it scanned the rune. Another pop-up appeared on the watch.

[Stage 2 Phantom Panther Rune added to Red Evolution Crystal.]

[Do you wish to initiate evolution?]

Ren exhaled through his nose, nodding once.

"Just like the stage one version. One path. No distractions. Predetermined."

And that was perfect.

That meant he didn’t need to guess. Didn’t need to analyze or weigh pros and cons.

The path had already been forged. It was a destiny carved out ahead of him, waiting to be claimed.

Something powerful enough that whoever designed it didn’t want to offer options. There was no need to ask questions when the answer was so obviously the right one.

But more importantly than all of that...

It could evolve.

Which meant...

His smile softened into something almost reverent. A moment of clarity amidst the storm of his usual sarcasm and excitement.

"...This isn’t just a backup rune anymore," he whispered. "You’re main team now."

His gaze lifted to the glowing rune crystal, and for a second, the swirling red and black light reflected in his eyes made him look like a warlock mid-ritual.

"Time to get on my body."

It was time.

Time to stop evolving scrolls like some detached observer. Time to stop treating his experiments like things to poke and prod.

He’d found a rune so powerful, so uniquely suited to his fighting style, that even he couldn’t resist claiming it.

And now, it was finally safe enough to be implanted onto his actual body. He didn’t need to keep testing. Didn’t need to wait for it to "catch up."

The Kinephantom Panther had arrived.

And from here on out, it would be running with him.

Ren stood there, staring down at his left palm where his main rune, the Stage 1 active Phantom Panther was carved in an intricate swirl of violet ink and faint silvery lines.

His fingers twitched, just a little, as if his body sensed the change that was about to come even before his mind caught up.

Normally, Ren was calm. But right now? Yeah... his heart was definitely hammering.

He licked his lips, breathed in deep, and tried to keep the shakiness from reaching his fingers.

"Okay... okay, relax," he muttered under his breath. "It’s just a rune evolution. You’ve evolved your mental sea like 3 times already. You literally risked the state of your own consciousness. How hard can this be?"

But even as he said that, he couldn’t stop the nervous fluttering in his stomach. This was different. He didn’t know why. He just knew.

Still, the curiosity, the thrill, the sheer possibility was far stronger than the fear.

He raised his left palm again and focused his will, pushing the rune forward mentally, guiding it toward the red evolution crystal that hovered in front of him like some high-tech relic.

And with a faint whum, it vanished.

One second it was etched into his skin, and the next, it had dematerialized in a shimmer of red light and reappeared, now floating gently inside the crystal like a sleeping beast waiting to awaken.

His watch vibrated almost immediately with a stream of pop-up messages that lit up the screen like confetti.

Ding!

[Stage 1 Phantom Panther Active Rune added to Red Evolution Crystal.]

Ding!

[Estimated Evolution Time: 1000 hours (Real Time) → 10 hours (Chamber Time)]

Ding!

[Evolution Paths Detected. Does host wish to view them?]

Ren grinned despite himself.

"Ah, there you are."

He quickly selected the Stage 1: Kinephantom Panther path, eager to get the ball rolling.

The crystal hummed in response, brightening slightly as the evolution began. The interface confirmed everything was working fine.

No errors. No backfires. No explosions. He let out a long, relieved breath and flopped onto the nearest couch, dragging his blanket around him like a burrito of success.

Ten hours passed like a dream, probably because he literally spent most of it napping or solving riddles. He may have skipped class, but this? This was an education all its own.

Eventually, his watch buzzed again, and he lazily reached for the red crystal still resting on the side table.

The moment he touched it, a warmth spread across his palm. He guided the rune out with his mind, and it rose from the crystal slowly, now no longer the same as before.

The moment it left the crystal, he blinked.

"Oh... whoa."

The new rune was completely different.

Its shape had morphed into a jagged, fluid design, almost like an inkblot mid-motion.

It shimmered with a strange texture; shadowy and sharp at the same time. It didn’t glow red like others. It looked like it swallowed light.

Then the rune moved.

Without warning, it shot straight toward his left hand, but instead of embedding itself back into the palm like before, it swerved upward and slammed into his eyes.

Bam!

Pain!

The pain wasn’t normal.

It wasn’t sharp like a cut or blunt like a punch.

No, this was like someone had shoved a volcanic needle directly into his eye socket, lit it on fire, and then played the drums on his optic nerve.

Ren had time to let out a strangled, "Wha—AGGHHH!!!" before everything went black.

He collapsed instantly, the world fading in a flash, and for a terrifying moment, it felt like he had died. Not just knocked out. Not passed out. Gone.

Darkness.

Nothingness.

Silence so thick it rang in his ears.

When Ren opened his eyes again, the afternoon light streaming through his dorm window told him morning had passed, but his body was not okay.

He sat up, groaning, clutching his temples as his head throbbed with what could only be described as a hangover from hell.

His vision was blurry at first, then slowly adjusted, colors slightly more vivid, shadows deeper.

Every movement felt strange, like his body had been reprogrammed while he was unconscious.

"What... the hell happened?" he muttered, voice raspy.

He looked at his left hand.

The rune wasn’t there.

He touched his palm. Nothing.

His eyes narrowed as realization slowly crawled up his spine.

"...Wait a sec."

The rune had entered his eyes!

His eyes.

That was not normal.

And if that wasn’t enough to freak him out, what happened next absolutely did.

A searing wave of pain slammed into his left eye like someone had tried to crush a star inside his skull.

He screamed, stumbling backward and knocking over his pillow. His body gave out and he fell to the floor, spasming, as the pain ignited like wildfire through his entire nervous system.

But this wasn’t physical pain alone.

This was deeper.

His soul felt like it was being dragged across broken glass and then electrocuted.

His very consciousness spasmed. His vision blurred into static. His breath hitched, heart racing wildly as panic overtook him!

"This isn’t just pain—this is—!!"

A voice inside his head tried to say soul seizure, but the words were crushed under the unbearable weight of agony.

His hands clawed at the floor as lightning bolts of pressure shot down his spine, and for the first time in his life, even after all the experiments, the fights, the curses, the near-death experiences, Ren realized he might actually die.

For the second time!

And worse than dying?

He didn’t even understand