Book 1 Chapter 98
[98]97.
Reaching the lake south of Naegrang, Leo clicked his tongue.
“This isn’t it. Is this the second time I’ve come up empty?”
Leo pulled out a map and marked the lake with an X.
‘Now one to the east, one to the north. The last one is…’
Leo turned his head and looked at the ruined castle.
‘One at the castle ruins.’
Since the lake at the castle ruins overlapped with Leo’s final destination, it could be checked last.
‘Anyway.’
Leo tucked the map away and looked behind him.
“So, why have you been following me?”
At his question, the owner of the presence between the buildings appeared before Leo.
“You knew I was following you, young master Leo?”
“Yes.”
“As expected, you’re amazing.”
“So. The castle ruins are in the opposite direction, aren’t they? Why did you follow me all the way here?”
“Why did young master Leo come all the way here?”
“I have personal business.”
“I also came for personal business.”
“What is it?”
Cha-aa-ak-!
“A match.”
As Chen Xia unleashed her aura, silken waves formed around her.
Chen Xia, wrapping the aura around her body like a feathered robe, extended her right hand towards Leo and lowered her stance with her left hand behind her back.
“Why suddenly?”
“I wanted to know. The extent of the gap between young master Leo and me. And…”
Chen Xia’s expression turned serious.
“What kind of person you are.”
Leo drew his sword.
“Is that all?”
“I’m also eyeing the position of class representative.”
At her words, Leo burst out laughing.
“Why are you laughing?”
“No. It just seems like this is the first time you’ve frankly shown your ambition.”
Chen Xia was one of the top students in the first year.
And the top students, no matter who they were, coveted Leo’s class representative position.
Because they had lived their lives as the best, they wouldn't be satisfied with anything less.
However, there was one student who notably held back.
That was Chen Xia.
‘She definitely had ambition, though.’
“I’m curious why you suddenly revealed your ambition.”
“It’s a Battle Royale. It’s a stage where true skill can be distinguished. And…”
Her eyes sank.
“I came to see it.”
“What?”
Pa-at-!
Chen Xia pushed off the ground and lunged at Leo.
‘A first strike?’
Basically, Chen Xia was a martial artist with a strong defensive tendency.
Due to the nature of the water attribute, she was more advantageous in defense and evasion than in attack.
Among the knight academy students, there were times when they debated at length who could break through her soft defense.
‘Celia and Duran were considered to have potential.’
But it was only potential.
Even the knight academy students were not confident that the two people, who were regarded as having the strongest offensive power among their peers, could break through Chen Xia’s defense.
That’s how overwhelming Chen Xia’s defense was.
She had abandoned that advantage and initiated the first attack.
‘Well, it’s not like her offense is weak either.’
Hwaruk-!
Leo unleashed a flame aura.
Chen Xia’s small hand moved softly.
But the attack that followed that softness was, literally, monstrous.
Chen Xia’s water aura turned into tiny droplets and scattered in all directions.
All the droplets became sharp needles.
“…!”
Leo hastily wrapped his body in a flame aura.
Pabababababat-!
Hundreds of needles attacked from all directions.
Chiiik!
The water needles collided with the wall of fire, creating steam.
They were an enormous number of needles, but they could not penetrate the flame barrier.
“It seems I’ll need awls, not needles.”
A palm-sized droplet of water formed in Chen Xia’s hand, then quickly transformed into a sharp awl.
Pa-at-!
The awl-shaped water aura pierced through the flame aura, targeting Leo.
Hwiiik!
Leo bent his body back, dodging the attack.
As he straightened up, Chen Xia’s instep came into view.
Chen Xia's primary skill was martial arts.
The biggest drawback of martial arts was the difficulty of closing the distance against an armed opponent.
However, conversely, that disadvantage meant that if she could close the distance, she could render her opponent helpless.
Leo raised his hand that wasn’t holding his sword, blocking Chen Xia’s attack.
Kwaang-! Puook-!
A bone-shattering impact assailed his right forearm, and his foot sank deeply into the dirt floor!
But he had no time to worry about that.
Chen Xia, having retracted her foot, aimed her fist at his right flank.
With an aura-infused attack, Leo dropped his sword and hastily used his left hand to block Chen Xia’s strike.
Peok-!
As if struck by a giant club, Leo’s body was flung backward from the spot.
Cheom-beong-!
Leo’s body slammed into the lakeside, sending a tall column of water shooting up.
“As expected of young master Leo… to counterattack even in that situation.”
Chen Xia grimaced, tearing off the tattered left sleeve of her blouse.
Even as he was thrown back, Leo’s flame aura succeeded in penetrating Chen Xia’s defense.
Cheom-beong.
Emerging from the water, Leo shook his throbbing right hand and looked at Chen Xia.
Chen Xia smiled, watching Leo.
“Indeed, young master Leo is amazing. To be perfectly fine after an attack with my full strength.”
“Fine? Does this look fine to your eyes? I’m in excruciating pain.”
Chen Xia gave a bitter smile, watching the grumbling Leo.
‘The very fact that he has enough energy left to joke is proof that he’s fine, isn’t it?’
Even as she thought that, Chen Xia prepared for Leo’s attack.
‘I launched a surprise attack once. Young master Leo isn’t someone who would fall for the same trick.’
She had other methods, but now was not the time to hastily attack Leo.
‘That attack from young master Leo back then.’
Chen Xia recalled the first day she learned the Hero’s Breath.
‘That must have been the maximum firepower young master Leo could unleash.’
Go-oooo-oh-!
Chen Xia released her aura.
Her black hair fluttered accordingly.
Her obsidian-like black eyes were tinged sapphire blue.
‘If only I can deflect that sword strike!’
“You’re not like yourself, Chen Xia.”
“Excuse me?”
“Water is a power that always changes with the flow, isn’t it?”
Leo tilted his head.
“But right now, you’re too stiff.”
“…!”
“Is something wrong?”
Chen Xia, who had been looking at Leo with a stiff face, smiled gently.
“Nothing is wrong.”
Leo extended his hand.
Woo-ung-!
The sword, reacting to the aura, was drawn into Leo’s hand.
Hwaruk-!
‘If only I can block that sword strike!’
Watching Chen Xia concentrate, Leo adjusted his grip on the sword.
Go-ooo-oh-!
Intense heat assailed Chen Xia’s skin.
Chen Xia tensed her entire body.
‘It’s coming!’
Kugugugugung!
Chen Xia inhaled sharply as she saw Leo’s flame aura rushing towards her.
As the Hero’s Breath activated, a powerful current of water formed around her.
The water aura, engulfing Leo’s sword strike, changed the flow of the strike.
At that moment, Chen Xia felt something was wrong.
‘It couldn’t possibly be just this much.’
“I told you.”
Chen Xia flinched at the voice from behind her.
“You’re stiff.”
Teop-!
She felt Leo’s palm touch her back.
Leo concentrated his aura at the tip of his palm and pushed it into Chen Xia’s back.
Pueong-!
“Ugh?”
The compressed aura exploded, flinging Chen Xia away.
Chen Xia, tumbling miserably on the ground, gasped as she saw a sword touching her neck.
“You lost.”
Chen Xia let out a hollow smile.
“Young master Leo. Are you really fifteen years old?”
“Of course. How old do I seem?”
“Like an old man who’s been rolling around on battlefields.”
Leo playfully chuckled, then tapped Chen Xia on the head and stepped back.
“What is this? Aren’t you going to eliminate me?”
Suddenly, Chen Xia’s face turned cold.
Her voice was so chilling that it was hard to believe it was her usual self.
“Even if it’s young master Leo, I cannot tolerate this. I don’t need this kind of mercy…”
“You seem to be mistaken.”
Leo snickered.
“This is a Battle Royale. How I use the loser is up to me.”
“What did you say?”
“If you’re a loser, you should listen to the winner, shouldn’t you? There are annoying kids chasing me, you see. You take care of them.”
Leaving those words, Leo darted away.
“What the…”
Chen Xia, with a bewildered expression, suddenly saw a flash of light beyond the buildings.
“He is my target. Don’t interfere, Eliza Hergin.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! Leo Flobe is my prey!”
Familiar voices were heard.
A moment later, Duran and Eliza, who arrived at the lakeside, stopped short upon discovering Chen Xia.
“Duran, Miss Eliza. The castle ruins are over there, why did you come all the way here?”
“And what about you? Why are you here? Are you also after Leo Flobe?”
Chen Xia gave a bitter smile, watching Duran approach with a frown.
“Seeing as you say ‘also,’ it seems Duran is the same.”
‘So this is what he meant.’
Chen Xia let out a hollow laugh, understanding the meaning of his request to ‘take care of the annoying things.’
“Did you lose?”
“Yes.”
“Where did he go?”
At that question, Chen Xia replied.
“He headed that way.”
As Duran was about to pursue Leo, Chen Xia said.
“Duran. I’m injured, so could you please accompany Miss Nella?”
“Why should I?”
“This is an inter-department competition, and Duran and I are in the same department. Surely Duran isn’t thinking of abandoning a fellow department member for a personal match?”
Duran frowned, watching Chen Xia speak with a gentle smile.
“You sly fox!”
Since she brought up the Knight Academy, Duran could not ignore Chen Xia.
“Good luck. I’m going to finish off Leo Flobe.”
Eliza jeered, and Duran’s face twisted in exasperation.
“Miss Eliza. I’m having trouble walking, so could you give me a ride?”
“Xia. If you were from the Summoning Department, I would help you, but you know we’re enemies right now, right?”
“Oh my! I always helped you study and everything! Now that I’m no longer useful, you’re just going to abandon me, aren’t you? Is that it?”
“W-What?”
“You said you’d definitely repay your debt every time you borrowed my notes!”
“I-I will definitely repay my debt! But there’s no need to repay it now…!”
Eliza scowled.
Eliza was not a student who diligently attended classes other than her major.
Chen Xia, who was always kind to those around her, had helped Eliza study for the midterm exams.
She was now bringing up that incident.
“You put on such airs, but you’re no different from other lowly people.”
Duran said, curling up the corners of his mouth, and Eliza’s eyes widened at his words.
A smile played on Duran’s lips.
‘If I can’t fight Leo Flobe, then you can’t fight Leo Flobe either.’
Eliza shouted at Duran’s smile, which seemed to suggest they should go together.
“Ah! We can go together! Together! Xia! We’ll only accompany each other until the central castle ruins! After that, we’re enemies!”
“Thank you, Miss Eliza.”
Chen Xia, who had manipulated the two students, sighed as she looked in the direction Leo had disappeared.
‘I don’t know why he’s not going to the central castle ruins, but… hurry and finish up, young master Leo.’
***
Central Castle Ruins.
“Don’t you dare peek!”
Hwaruruk! Kwang!
“Guh! It’s Celia Zerdinger!”
“Damn it! We were so close!”
Naturally, students were flocking to the central castle ruins, which could be considered the only safe zone in this city.
To enter the central castle ruins, one had to pass through the gates opened to the east, west, north, and south.
One could climb the castle walls, but doing so would make them a perfect target for concentrated fire from students positioned around, so no student rashly attempted to climb the walls.
However, passing through the gates was not easy either.
This was due to the students from other departments guarding each gate.
“Damn it! That’s impossible! Let’s go somewhere else!”
Juredin’s party left the wall guarded by Celia and arrived at the west gate.
And seeing a student guarding the west gate, he tore at his hair.
“Chloe Muller!”
At the west gate, Chloe was seen standing, holding a staff as tall as herself.
‘Now all that’s left are the south and east gates. It’ll be a headache if top-ranked students from other departments are guarding them too!’
Eliza, the second-ranked student in the Summoning Department, had gone after Leo.
‘Please, Waredon! Just occupy one gate!’
If they stayed outside the castle ruins and a curse activated, weakening them, they would become targets for the students inside the ruins.
Depending on the curse, there was a high probability of total annihilation without proper resistance.
Juredin was about to move to the south gate, feeling his mouth dry.
Kiaa-aa-ak!
“Huh?”
Juredin looked up at the sky with a bewildered face at the monstrous roar from above.
Chloe also turned her gaze to the sky with a puzzled expression.
A ferociously ugly black wyvern was flying there.
“Black Wyvern?”
“No way! A top-tier phantom beast couldn’t possibly appear!”
As Juredin’s party was startled.
Jjeok-!
The black wyvern opened its mouth and began to spew breath towards Juredin’s party.
“Aargh! W-What is this!”
The powerful acidic breath melted the ground.
Juredin looked up at the sky with a grim face.
‘That’s not a phantom beast! Could it be a monster? Are there monsters that look like that?’
Juredin tried to identify the unknown wyvern using the information in his mind.
But there was no way he could figure out the identity of Fafnir, a magical beast that had gone extinct during the Age of Calamity due to the great heroes.
Fafnir opened its mouth wide and targeted Juredin’s party, spewing breath.
Kyaa-aa-ak!
“Damn it! Evade first!”