Book 1 Chapter 99
【99】98.
“Haa!”
Chelsea moved quickly, unleashing a barrage of magic.
“Fast.”
Howl of Class 1 narrowed his brows as he parried the raging wind magic with his spear.
Seeing that, Illiana raised both arms and bounced around.
“As expected of Chelsea! Small and strong!”
“Who are you calling small!”
“Why aren’t you helping! Raden!”
Chelsea and Howl shouted at Illiana simultaneously.
At that, Illiana flinched and ducked her head.
“Wind Chain!”
Chelsea created a chain of wind and shot it forward.
Howl then lightly performed an Aura Step to evade Chelsea’s attack.
‘As expected of someone aspiring to be a Battle Mage. It’s no joke. To be able to move at this speed and cast spells…’
Howl had already eliminated five students from the Department of Magic, but Chelsea was on a different level from the previous magic students.
‘Moreover, even if I close the distance, she’s skilled in close combat.’
Unlike other magic students, Chelsea didn't fall even when she allowed close quarters.
Meanwhile, Chelsea also found Howl a burden.
‘He moves like a snake and closes in, it’s incredibly annoying!’
Howl’s Poison Aura would be deadly to other mages, but Chelsea, whose specialty was wind magic, had the elemental advantage.
This was because she could blow away the poison with wind.
However, despite the elemental disadvantage, Howl dodged Chelsea's magic and closed the distance.
‘My speed is faster though.’
Howl was considered to be just below the top three in the Department of Knights, so there was no sign of the battle ending.
“Both of you, fighting!”
“So stop just watching and help! Raden!”
“How long are you going to stand back! Join quickly! Illiana!”
As Howl and Chelsea shouted simultaneously, Illiana scratched her cheek.
“Even if you say that, it’s too ambiguous to attack either of you, isn’t it?”
“What’s ambiguous! You’re from the Department of Magic!”
“What are you talking about! You’re from the Department of Knights!”
“No. I haven’t chosen either of them yet.”
Leo wasn't the only student who hadn’t chosen a department.
To be precise, some dual-class students had ambiguous departmental affiliations.
Illiana was one of them.
In preparation for this inter-departmental competition, when the Department of Magic focused on mobility training, she focused more on the Department of Knights' classes.
As a Magic Swordsman, her mobility was already secured.
That’s why she trained with students from the Department of Knights throughout the preparation period for the inter-departmental competition.
“Then help me! Howl is from Class 1!”
“Sorry, Chelsea. Howl grumbled about this and that but taught me well in the Department of Knights class. So, it feels a bit mean to attack him just because he’s from Class 1.”
Howl had helped Illiana, a skilled individual, to firmly draw her into the Department of Knights ahead of the inter-departmental competition.
Chelsea pressed her temple and said.
“If you’re not going to help either side, go somewhere else. Don’t just loiter around annoyingly.”
“I agree with Chelsea Rwalin.”
Howl sighed and said, and Illiana chuckled playfully.
“No, but. If you two keep fighting, eventually one will win and the other will be exhausted, right? Then I’ll take down one of you! Hehe! Good strategy, isn’t it?”
Chelsea and Howl’s faces simultaneously turned cold.
“It’s a joke! A joke! If one of you gets tired later, I’ll help…”
“So. You’ll stab us in the back?”
“A malicious strategy.”
“Huh? Huh? I said it was a joke though!”
“Chelsea Rwalin. I propose we deal with Raden first.”
“We’re on the same page. I was thinking the same thing.”
“Ah! I told you it was a joke!”
Illiana shrieked.
Whoosh! CRASH!
Something fell behind Illiana from the sky.
GROOOOAAAR!
It was an alien creature with a massive physique, about 3 meters tall.
A wicked battle-axe was gripped in its thick hands, which looked capable of shattering a person's body with just a graze.
Hiss- Hiss-
It exhaled powerful snorts from its nose.
A monster with the head of an ox.
“Minotaur?!”
“Why is a magical beast here?!”
Chelsea and Howl gasped in horror.
GROOOOAAAR!
The Minotaur brought its axe down towards Illiana.
CRASH—!
***
“As I expected, you were here, Vice-Lord Zis.”
“It’s been a long time. This is the first time since the entrance exam, Sir Rozes.”
The people around Zis scrambled to their feet.
Rozes raised a hand, looking at them.
“News of your nephew reaches the imperial palace daily. Even His Majesty the Emperor marvels, saying, ‘As expected of a Zerdlinger’.”
As Rozes Rwalin spoke with a smile, Zis grinned.
“Abbad and Chelsea also took first and second place in the Department of Magic during the midterm exams, didn’t they? I believe His Majesty will be even more pleased by that.”
The eyes of those around them naturally gravitated towards the powerhouses of the Zerdlinger and Rwalin families, who supported Rodren, the strongest nation in the western continent.
Just then, the entire audience watching the inter-departmental competition began to murmur.
“Is that… a magical beast?”
“Why did a magical beast appear in the inter-departmental competition?”
“Was Naegrang a monster-infested area?”
While the audience wore puzzled expressions.
The professors also noticed the anomaly.
“Why did a magical beast suddenly appear?”
Sedjen’s eyes widened.
Halrind stood up and quickly headed to the control room overseeing the inter-departmental competition.
“What’s going on?”
“P-Professor Halrind! We have a big problem! We can’t contact the control room in Naegrang!”
“What did you say?!”
Halrind’s face stiffened.
“Immediately stop the inter-departmental competition and recall the students.”
“Yes? What do you mean….”
The staff members looked bewildered at Halrind’s sudden command.
“Are you saying you’ll leave the students in a dangerous area when there’s no control!?”
“But Professor Halrind, if we do that, the higher-ups will…”
“I’ll take responsibility! Stop talking and recall the students!”
“Yes, y-yes!”
Startled by Halrind’s sharp demeanor, the staff members activated their teleportation magic.
“Ah, it won’t work! The teleportation isn’t activating!”
Halrind’s eyes widened at the urgent shout from a staff member.
“What’s happening, Halrind?”
“It’s an emergency. All connections with Naegrang have been cut off!”
“What?!”
Sedjen’s face turned pale.
Several hours had passed since the inter-departmental competition began, but a hundred students were still remaining in Naegrang.
“You take command here. I’ll go to the principal.”
“Understood.”
Halrind left the control room, looked at the magic transmission screen, and grimaced.
‘What in the world is happening!’
***
The students who survived the inter-departmental competition also began to notice the anomaly, one by one.
“Haa!”
“Ugh!”
A student from the Department of Knights was fiercely pressing a student from the Department of Magic.
“It was tough moving so fast! But this is the end! Don’t resent me for eliminating you! I’ll treat you to something later!”
The two students from the same class were close friends.
So, they had promised beforehand not to resent each other if they ended up fighting in the inter-departmental competition.
The knight student, who had created an opening, grinned and thrust his sword towards the abdomen.
The magic bracelet provided to the students immediately activated teleportation magic the moment it detected the wearer's danger.
It was magic bestowed to protect the students' safety.
Therefore, even if an actual attack to the abdomen occurred, there would be no serious injury.
Thud!
“Ugh?”
“Huh…?”
Both the knight student and the magic student widened their eyes at the situation that unfolded.
“W-what… *cough*?”
Seeing his friend cough up blood, the knight student's hands trembled.
“W-what is this. Hey! Snap out of it! Snap out of it!”
He hugged his friend, his face pale, and cried out.
“Excuse me! Is anyone there! Help! My friend is hurt!”
Meanwhile, outside the castle walls, monsters from the surrounding area suddenly began gathering at the ruins of the castle.
The students guarding the castle gate looked confused at the sight.
“What! What’s going on?!”
A student from the Department of Summoning looked surprised at the situation outside.
Amidst fierce battles between departments, a large number of monsters suddenly attacked.
As a result, pandemonium broke out in front of the castle gate.
“Monsters?”
“W-wait, this is too many!”
A large number of monsters.
Normally, they should have joined forces, but as it was during the inter-departmental competition, they couldn’t combine their strength.
“Lucky us!”
The summoning student cheered.
Just as they were struggling to hold back the knight and magic students, the monsters attacked at a opportune moment.
It was a very advantageous situation for those guarding the castle gate.
Just then, Warreden, who was sitting on the castle wall, narrowed his eyes.
He had never participated in combat.
He merely sat quietly, watching the inter-departmental competition as if waiting for someone.
He had consistently ignored calls for help from his fellow summoning students.
Suddenly, Warreden stood up.
“What? Are you finally going to help too?”
The commanding summoning student clicked his tongue, as if saying, 'Are you only stepping up now?'
But Warreden just stared intently at the monster horde.
‘Strange. Monsters suddenly acting in groups?’
Warreden, a summoner, felt something off about the monsters’ movements.
‘They’re being controlled by something.’
Having thought that far, Warreden raised his head.
High above the castle ruins, Warreden spotted the black wyvern he had seen during the midterm exams and unleashed his spiritual power.
“Huh? Warreden?”
GROOOOAAAR—!
A reddish glow enveloped Warreden's entire body.
WHOOSH! CRACK-CRACK-CRASH-CRASH!
A massive explosion occurred in the midst of the monsters attacking the knight and magic departments.
“W-what was that?”
“Warreden? Why is he helping us?”
A student from another department during the inter-departmental competition.
Moreover, Warreden, who had a bad relationship even with his own departmental students, was helping them, leaving the other departmental students with stunned expressions.
“Open the gate.”
“What? What nonsense are you talking about now? And why are you suddenly helping them?!”
“Stop talking and just open the gate. This isn’t the time for an inter-departmental competition.”
“What nonsense are you spouting out of nowhere! And why should we listen to your orders… *cough*!”
Warreden grabbed the neck of the student who was giving orders.
“No time to explain. Sleep.”
“C-c-cough—!”
The student, whose neck was being choked, rolled his eyes back and fainted.
As the surrounding students looked on in shock, Warreden said in a cold voice.
“From now on, I am in command. Open the gate.”
Warreden pushed the unconscious student aside and said.
“From now on, our enemies are magical beasts and monsters. If there are any who fight among departments, I will deal with them first, so be aware.”
“O-okay!”
“I’ll tell the other department kids too!”
“And you.”
“Eek? W-why are you calling me?”
A female student flinched in fear at Warreden’s call.
“You contracted with a wind beast, didn’t you?”
“Uh, yeah!”
“Then go tell the others at the other gates.”
Warreden looked up at the sky and unleashed his spiritual power.
Fafnir began to descend at a terrifying speed.
“Tell them to stop the inter-departmental competition because an unusual situation has occurred.”
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