Chapter 43: Midterm Exam (2)

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"How…?"

A Knights School student said with a trembling voice, as he witnessed the giant kite shield being shattered to pieces.

It was a family heirloom — a symbol of the household that had proven its performance on the battlefield throughout the years.

Although his father exaggeratedly claimed that it could even block falling meteorites, it was undoubtedly a reliable piece of equipment.

And yet…

"Hey."

The human who just turned the shield into scrap metal with their bare fist scratched their head and said.

Irritatedly, even.

"That's it? Really?"

This was coming from someone who defeated dozens of students without any weapons, just their bare hands.

Most of the students at Elfante were confident in their abilities. And among them, even if it was just a select few, some could be considered as skilled as the normal professors themselves. However, it was highly likely that even they couldn't guarantee a victory in this situation.

They probably wouldn't even last that long.

Not to mention…

Even from the perspective of a Knights School Student, who basically specialized in honing the physique, it was evident that the opponent didn't utilize even a fraction of their true power.

This just meant that there was that big of a difference between their trained body alone.

Considering that abilities that strengthen the body typically involve multiplying basic physical capabilities, this person's true strength, was truly...

"What kind of monster are you…!?"

'...Frightening, to say the least.'

"Bullshit."

However, the other person simply sneered at such words.

"The problem here is that you guys are too weak."

Riru Garda snorted and kicked the student in the head.

With a grunt, the student's body rolled backward.

This kind of violence was undoubtedly excessive for a midterm exam, which would end by simply taking their necklace. Riru also couldn't feel any enthusiasm for such violence.

Wasn't it natural for the weak to be beaten by the strong?

But before any unnecessary guilt could even settle in, she was consumed by endless frustration.

'Why can't I find anyone decent?'

Ever since her exile, after the Tribal Alliance's Civil War, the time she had been spending in the Empire was nothing short of a prison sentence.

Having obtained a student status that she never experienced, she was poking here and there for places to fight.

Battlefield. Combat. Life and death.

For someone whose entire life could be summed up with these three fronts, the academy was way too peaceful.

'At this age, killing at least one person is to be expected.'

Because of the barren environment surrounding the Tribal Alliance, unless one grew up as an exceptional warrior, survival was more or less impossible.

By comparison, the people in the Empire were weak and indecisive.

It was only natural for frustration to arise within her.

She didn't even use her powers.

"…"

Except for one guy…

There was one individual who could keep up with her speed.

His name was…

'Do… do… What was it again?'

Unfortunately, Riru's memory wasn't very good.

Anyway, that guy.

The one who had seen through her usage of Law Power.

"…Haa."

Law Power was a special power granted only to a tiny number of individuals in the Tribal Alliance.

Not to mention the Empire, but even within the Tribal Alliance, there were only a handful of people who had witnessed its use firsthand.

So seeing through it just like that meant one of two things.

Either he knew how to use it himself.

Or he had met someone who wielded this power.

And if at least one of the two conditions was satisfied…

Then he perfectly fit Riru's conditions for someone she needed to fight against.

Especially considering why she and her clan were exiled from the Tribal Alliance, to begin with.

"Ah, where can I find him? I want to hit him at least once."

"If you do something like that for no reason, Riru Garda, you'll be expelled from the academy. Since you're in exile, it might be better to keep a lower profile, don't you think?"

Hearing her name being casually called, Riru flinched and immediately turned around.

It was an unfamiliar individual.

Dressed immaculately in uniform, with a black longsword tucked away in her hips, silver hair and red eyes, and a name tag that read Eleanor fashioned on her chest.

The Student Council President. Riru had heard that the Student Council President was one of the people who knew her true identity.

And, above all…

'…There are capable people here after all.'

Riru, who had roughly gauged the other person's skill level, smiled with satisfaction.

She was not sitting as the students' representative for nothing. She was a worthy opponent that Riru was willing to risk her life to fight against.

She looked to be a bit weaker than her but was still at a level that could give her a run for her money.

"The violence you are committing has already gone too far. As an overseer of this exam, I can't just let it go. I'm quite busy, but I got summoned because of you."

"So what are you gonna do about it?"

Riru smirked and raised her fist.

"Are you going to kick me out?"

She had a feeling it'd turn out like this.

Oh… how she wished that Eleanor would draw her sword, and charge at her with genuine intent to kill. That was what she desired from the bottom of her heart…

"I will make you leave. Though, not by my own hands."

Having said that, Eleanor pressed a switch she took out from her pocket.

At the same time, white light emanated from the necklace Riru was wearing.

Before she could even react, a holy aura had already enveloped her entire body, making Riru frown.

'Divine Power?'

It didn't feel like it was going to harm her or anything. More like there was a strong intent to remove her from the Grand Plains.

was there such a blessing on all of the students' necklaces?

'…Did the Empire ever have someone with such powerful divine abilities?'

A blessing that teleported the target to another location, it was quite an advanced technique.

Not to mention distributing it to all the students currently in the Grand Plains.

She even thought of the ridiculous idea that the Holy Land's Saintess was present in this place.

Of course, even the Saintess wouldn't be able to support all this by her lonesome.

This was a magnitude that needed at least 10 Archbishop-level personnel of the Holy Land to stably operate it.

If it was less than that, then…

It would only serve the purpose of inflicting torture on the user.

This was especially true when the Divine Power Depletion phenomenon was taken into consideration.

Lost in these thoughts, she soon received a response from the other person.

"Anyway, go and cool your head. This may be a competition, but fighting for barbaric reasons like you are doing right now is prohibited in Elfante."

"…Are all the Empire's people just cowards? It seems like your father taught you so."

Among the things that a member of the Tribal Alliance could say, there were two top-tier insults.

One was being called a coward, and the other? A disparaging remark about one's father.

However, upon hearing those words, Eleanor showed no reaction other than a sneer on her face.

"Indeed that old man is a coward. You have quite an observant eye, Riru Garda."

"…"

On the contrary, she looked strangely satisfied.

So it was true that her relationship with her father was bad. As expected, these Empire people were weird.

However, she couldn't just step back like this. At the very least, she would have to induce a reaction that would make her hostile when they met later down the line.

Riru thought of a few more words to provoke her opponent.

'Ah, that's right.'

There was one more regular pattern that worked especially well for the warriors of the Tribal Alliance.

"Well, you can't deny that you're a coward yourself. Seeing that, I bet everyone around you is a moron too, right?"

"…"

Eleanor's eyes narrowed dangerously.

Oh, there was finally a reaction.

Riru continued with a sly grin on her face.

"Do you have a boyfriend? If you do, I'll snatch him away right in front of you. We'll see if you still act like a coward—"

But she had to stop mid-sentence.

"…"

Eleanor hadn't said anything.

However, her eyes.

Those eyes were now glowing red.

Almost, inhumanely so.

It was like the eyes of a monster rather than a monster.

"…"

Facing that, Riru had to unconsciously take a step back.

Even she was shocked by her reaction.

'…Did I get scared? Me?'

She, who had navigated the inferno of the battlefield countless times, was shaken by a mere gaze?

And on top of that, it was from an opponent she believed she could confidently defeat.

〚Riru Garda.〛

Eleanor's frosty voice resonated in the dazed Riru's ears.

The atmosphere around her had completely changed.

As if...

Something different had taken her form from the inside.

〚I'll let it slide this time. You seem to enjoy provoking others without knowing your place.〛

As Eleanor approached her step by step, Riru once again retreated a few steps back.

The suffocating pressure made Riru's breath hitch, and her legs refused to obey her orders.

〚So, there won't be a second time.〛

And then...

〚No one can take that man away from me. Do you understand?〛

With that voice ringing in her ears, Riru's body was teleported out of the Great Plains.

"…"

In the empty waiting room, she gazed down at herself with a blank expression.

'…Just what... was that?'

One thing was certain.

The unknown entity inside the Student Council President was something Riru could never defeat in battle.

It was not just a matter of lacking skill or ability.

But rather, it felt different from the very nature of her being.

That even if she trained all her life, she wouldn't be able to overcome it.

"…"

It had been a long time since she felt such a feeling.

A wild, almost feral, grin appeared on her face.

Her body was drenched in cold sweat, but her spirit was more excited than ever before.

There was finally someone worthy of a fight in this place. An individual she wanted to battle to the death.

In other words, she could become stronger through this struggle.

"…"

The moment the situation completely flipped was after she mentioned her boyfriend.

It was Eleanor's trigger point.

In other words, it was a surefire way to provoke a fight with her.

Then all she needed to do...

'…The key is that guy.'

She would somehow conquer him.

Her eyes glinted with determination.

***System Message

[ The target Riru Garda has started taking an interest in you! ]

[ The target Eleanor has acquired a new skill under your influence! ]

[ Divine Descent - Wrath will be added to the target's skillset. ]

[ The skill will be added to Skill: Guidance! ]

"…"

Sometimes, I really just want to grab the system by the collar and say.

'I legit didn't do anything, so tell me why the hell are these things being added?'

And, to begin with...

'Divine Descent?'

This was a technique that, albeit limitedly, manifested the devil fragment within one's body. The Wrath part meant that the corresponding emotion had been maximized to unlock this skill.

In other words, it was not something that was like an option one could open when one was a bit angry. It only happened when you genuinely wanted to kill someone.

'…What the hell happened?'

These thoughts crossed my mind, but now was definitely not the right time to leisurely ponder such things.

I had my hands full after all.

"You heinous bastard…!"

"You dare wear a mask to do something like this, show yourself…!"

"…"

Listening to the torrent of insults right in front of me, I wanted to defend myself.

Like…

On one hand, I was dragging a woman as if she was some luggage, and on the other, had another woman on a leash.

"He's treating people like animals...! Miss! Hero! Please wait a moment! I'll rescue you soon!"

"Yeah, take revenge for our fallen brothers…!"

"…You're together with them?"

I asked in a dumbfounded voice.

I had been ambushed more than ten times in the process of getting to this place.

'So they're all in on this…?'

"Anyone who raises their sword at a trash is a comrade!"

"Look at how you fought first then tell me, you scumbag!"

"…"

Hmm. I didn't have anything to refute that statement.

They were easily repelled by Iliya and Yuria. In the first place, what could freshmen really do against the Hero candidate and a Devil's Vessel?

Rather than blocking the ambushes, it was more difficult to control Yuria's distance and not have her within three steps of anyone.

But this was exactly the problem.

From an outsider's perspective, me suddenly pulling the leash looked like I was forcefully dragging Yuria around like a slave.

'…I saved you guys there.'

I never meant for it to be weird.

Never…!

[Why are they so angry? I'm fine.]

No. Even if the person involved said such things, it didn't really explain the situation at all.

It wasn't looking good.

Iliya smiled bitterly at the sight of Yuria tilting her head as she wrote out.

"Still, this time won't be easy."

Iliya's eyes narrowed as she looked at the people in front.

The previous raids were relatively small-scale, but the group in front of us right now consisted of almost a hundred people.

Seeing all these people gathering here with the intention of taking me down truly felt strange.

'…Are they all Iliya's fans?'

'Superfans can be so scary.'

I knew this would happen when I teamed up with her.

"This would need more than just fighting to get through all of this. If only we could bypass this, it would lead us straight to the Sanctuary. Why does it have to be like this…"

Even for Iliya, who had effortlessly dealt with the previous attacks, this number of opponents was overwhelming.

It was not just a large number; it was a perfectly balanced combination of the Knights School, Magic School, and the Theology School.

To simply break through this combination with merely three people would be an absurd idea.

"No. This is fine."

"…Yes?"

Uh.

Rather, I was waiting for something like this to happen.

Mainly in terms of honing my abilities.

Improving skills through actual combat was one way, but there was a skill that could only be utilized when I had comrades and large-scale enemies.

"…"

Obviously, that was only possible when combat was possible. But the current gap between us and them was like the difference between Heaven and Earth.

But I had a way to narrow that gap.

If the opponents were balanced, there was only one way left to break through.

Overwhelming power…

"…"

With a smirk, I tapped the amulet lightly.

Mister… Wake up, please.

[…Uh? Huh? What?]

Caliban drowsily muttered inside the amulet.

Thanks to my insufficient Divine Power, this person spent most of his time sleeping.

Unless I specifically woke him up, he stayed in a kind of hibernation state.

I whispered quietly to the amulet.

"Could you please do me a favor and come out."

[…I don't know what's going on, but it seems dangerous.]

The moment Caliban muttered those words a white curtain unfolded around us.

System Notification

[ The Spirit has been summoned! ]

[ Skill: Image World has been activated! ]

[ Buffs are shared with nearby party members! ]

And here…

"Oi."

"…Yes?"

I looked at the wide-eyed Iliya and whispered.

"I apologize in advance. You can hit me as much as you want later. I'll take it all."

Even I thought that this was a bit… overkill.

But this was necessary. Anyhow.

Before she could respond, I pulled her tightly with one arm, drawing her closer to my body.

[…Look at this guy. Did you wake me up just to show me this?]

As soon as Caliban said those words with a chuckle.

"…!"

While Iliya's body stiffened, and Yuria's eyes widened from the side.

I smiled at the crowd in front, which suddenly fell silent.

"But you see, you guys."

Calm and collected, I spoke nothing but the facts.

"What gives you the right to take this guy?"

Smiling slyly at the astonished crowd, I said.

"I never said I would give her to you."

"…"

"Does the owner need a stranger's permission?"

Silence spread all around. It went on for a long while.

As Iliya's face turned bright red, piercing screams echoed in the surroundings

"Kill that bastard-!"

"I'll tear you up, you sonuvabi-!"

The various curses and shouts were soon drowned out by even louder roars as students, equipped with their weapons, rushed toward us.

Oh wow, this was quite scary.

But the scarier they charged at me, the better it was for me.

System Message

[ A moment of danger has been detected. ]

[ Determined the situation could result in serious injury. ]

[ Skill: Desperation raised to A-Grade. ]

Now then…

The term buff generally referred to a skill that enhanced the target's abilities.

In other words...

System Notification

[ Confirming activation of Skill: Image World. ]

[ Sharing Skill: Desperation (A-Grade) with target Iliya and target Yuria. ]

'That's right...'

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