Volume 5
Chapter 20
The five parties that had defeated special targets in this exercise. As a result of all of them gathering in the same place, a tremendous chaotic battle unfolded in the northern area.
"Haa!"
"Kuh!"
"Camilla!
Support!"
"I know... Ah,
both of you, back off!"
Lisa, using the
Nivea's Demonic Hand, tried to cut into Tima, supported by Ken and Camilla.
However, Irisdina,
fully demonstrating her quick responsiveness with Instant Deployment and her
inherent swordsmanship, and Tima, whose powerful magic could sweep away enemies
despite the time it took to chant, were handling Lisa's fierce attacks with
seamless coordination.
"Tommy! Are you
alright!?"
"Ah, yeah. But at
this rate!"
"I know! Anyway,
we have to do something about Shina and the others... Damn it! Mimuru, don't
get in the way!!"
"Don't be
unreasonable! If Mars-kun gets free in this situation, we might be crushed in
an instant!"
Mars, Tommy, and
Hamuria were under attack from Shina, Mimuru, and Tom. Mimuru fully utilized
her agility to disrupt Mars and his team. Moreover, Shina and Tom in the rear
continued to fire arrows and magic regardless of Mimuru's movements.
However, the launched
magic and arrows did not hit Mimuru; they accurately attacked Mars and his team
by threading through the gaps in her movements. Just like Irisdina's team, they
also showed excellent coordination.
Near Mars and his
team, Jin and Cami were fighting the spear-wielding female student, who had
recovered with their healing magic.
"You! Just give
up already! Despite being from the bottom class!"
"So what if we
are!"
The two had been on
the defensive before Shina and her team intervened, but the spear user had not
fully recovered from the damage caused by Tom's magic, and an even battle was
unfolding.
Mars gritted his
teeth, glancing at Jin and the others' battle.
"Damn it! At this
rate..."
A sense of impatience
gradually filled Mars's heart.
(What do I do!? Nozomu
and I are both tied up! Jin and Cami are in the same situation!)
The current situation
was maintained in a delicate balance. Even a slight change could lead to the
complete annihilation of their party, so they couldn't make any reckless moves.
And that only further fueled Mars's impatience.
(Should I break
through to Nozomu? No, Jin and the others would be defeated in the meantime.
Charging at Shina and her team... No, they're not the kind of people who would
give me such an opening.)
It wasn't just Kevin
and his team who were flustered by the sudden and continuous changes in the
situation; Mars and his team were also in the same boat.
(Damn it, what should
I do... That's it. If it's that...)
What came to Mars's
mind was "that technique" he had been training.
It was a technique
that Tima, who had trained with him, had told him not to use because it was
incomplete and unstable, but now he had no choice.
(Nozomu and the others
said it was better not to use it, but I should use any hand I can. I've
succeeded once. I'll make it work somehow!)
Mars was affected by
the atmosphere of the battlefield, even though it was a mock battle. He
believed his decision was correct and began pouring two powers into his
greatsword.
While Mars and his
team were struggling in the chaotic battle, Nozomu, Feo, and Kevin were still
clashing their weapons, intertwining with each other.
"Come on! You're
persistent, Feo!"
"Don't say such
cold things, Nozomu! It's a rare opportunity, so let's do it again here... Hey,
don't interfere! Kevin!!"
"Shut up! You two
have been irritating me this whole time! I'll crush both of you right
here!!"
Kevin punched Feo, who
was trying to corner Nozomu. Feo parried the outstretched fist by spinning the
staff in both hands, but in that opening, Kevin switched places and attacked
Nozomu as well.
(Damn it! This
situation is bad...)
Impatience gradually
welled up in Nozomu's mind. Nozomu's party originally had many members with low
fundamental abilities. Until now, they had won by using strategies and traps,
but in a chaotic battle situation where allies and enemies were mixed,
pre-established strategies and tactics were mostly useless. In such a
situation, one's inherent abilities directly correlated with their survival
rate.
In other words, if the
battle continued to unfold in this way, Nozomu's team was most likely to be
defeated first.
In fact, Nozomu had to
continuously use ki techniques at full power to keep up with the movements of
Kevin and Feo.
(It's bad if it drags
on too long... I'll run out of ki and won't be able to handle them anymore.)
Nozomu was the most
likely to be defeated first among Nozomu, Feo, and Kevin, who were currently
fighting.
He glanced around, but
everywhere, the battle situation remained stalemated, and everyone present was
at their limit. In other words, if one place collapsed, it would trigger a
chain reaction that would lead to the conclusion of the other battles.
(The most effective
way would be to break through with Mars's breakthrough power...)
However, in his
current state, being pressed by Feo and Kevin, he couldn't reach Mars and his
team. He had to separate them and support Mars and his team simultaneously.
(... It's not that
there's no way, but...)
A method came to his
mind. However, Nozomu hesitated to use that method.
One reason was that if
he made a mistake, he might be disqualified. In this stalemated situation, that
could directly lead to his party's defeat.
The second was the
danger of the technique he would use. Nozomu had hardly ever used offensive ki
techniques in the academy, including mock battles. Ki techniques with too high
a lethality, including Phantom Void, were too dangerous within the cradle of
the academy.
"What are you
looking away for!!"
"Kuh!!"
Kevin punched Nozomu
from his blind spot, where he had been looking away. He instinctively twisted
his body to dodge, but the ki-infused fist sliced Nozomu's cheek with just the
wind pressure. In any case, if the three-way stalemate continued, Nozomu's
defeat was almost certain.
(... It's a gamble...
but I have no choice. The point is not to hit the body. If the target is that,
there's no problem.)
If direct action was
impossible, he would manage it indirectly. Fortunately, the target of the ki
technique was not a person.
As Nozomu steeled
himself and began to send ki into his katana, a sudden gust of wind swept
through the area.
"Wh-what is
that!?"
Nozomu and the others,
who had been fighting, looked towards the sudden gust of wind, and saw wind
gathering around Mars's greatsword. Moreover, the wind swirling around was
clearly stronger than the ki techniques he usually used.
Looking closely, two
different ki were swirling around his greatsword.
There was no mistake.
It was the simultaneous use of ki and magic that Mars had used in a previous
mock battle. The swirling wind, aided by Mars's ability, gathered on his
greatsword with even greater force.
"Guuuuu!!"
"Th-this
is..."
"M-Mars-kun!"
Nozomu was bewildered
by that power. It was certainly an extraordinary wind power, but a shiver ran
down his spine in a different sense. A powerful but uncontrolled force. The
uncertain power fueled Nozomu's sense of crisis.
Mars had probably
decided to use that forbidden technique out of impatience with the current
situation, where he couldn't see a breakthrough.
Tima also seemed to
sense the danger and called out to Mars to stop, but Mars, without hesitation,
pointed the tip of his greatsword towards Nozomu's location.
"Nozomu!! Dodge
it!!"
"Ch-!!"
The moment Nozomu,
following the command of the sense of crisis that flashed through his mind,
used Flash Step to leave the spot, the suppressed wind was released.
A torrent of wind
burst forth with a roar. The combined ki technique "Rending Dust
Hammer" and the magic "Ravenous Beast of the Wind Tunnel" rushed
straight forward, spiraling as if intertwined. They tore up the ground and
shredded tree trunks, advancing towards Nozomu and the others.
"What!!"
"Hey! What is
this!!"
Kevin and Feo, seeing
the massive wind spiral approaching them, instinctively tried to get away.
However, they were a step too late, and both were swallowed by the torrent of
wind.
"Kuh!!"
As expected, with such
a powerful technique, Nozomu was worried about the two who were caught in it,
but Shina's figure, aiming at the defenseless Mars, appeared in Nozomu's sight.
He decided to break through this situation no matter what, and swung his
ki-infused katana at his target.
The flying ki blade severed
the tree trunk behind Shina and Tom, and the falling tree fell on Shina and her
team.
"Hey!
Wait!!"
"Tom! Run!!"
Tom and Shina hastily
retreated from the spot.
For a moment, the
support attack stopped. In that opening, Mars, having regained his posture,
swept Mimuru with his greatsword. However, the agile Mimuru, though blown away,
spun once in the air and landed on the ground with ease.
In the meantime, Tommy
slashed at the Kevin party's spear user, who had been fighting Jin and the
others.
"Kuh!!"
The female student
tried to deflect Tommy's greatsword by aligning her spear with its path.
However, she was still hindered by the damage from Tom's magic and had no
energy left to handle the attacks from Jin, Tommy, and Cami.
The spear user was
greatly thrown off balance by Tommy's slash.
"Teiyaaaah!"
Jin slashed in that
opening. Furthermore, Cami attacked from the side. As Jin and Cami's blades
caught her body, her pendant glowed red, signaling her disqualification.
While Jin and his team
were defeating the spear user, Mars was trying to charge at Shina and her team.
Mimuru tried to stop Mars, but Mars's breakthrough power was unstoppable for
Mimuru.
However, just as Mars
was about to shake off Mimuru, Feo suddenly intervened from the side.
Perhaps due to Mars's
earlier technique, his uniform was tattered, and he had cuts all over his body.
"What the hell
are you doing, all of a sudden!? If I hadn't used my talisman arts, I'd be a
rag!!"
"Tch, so you
didn't become one... And what happened to that dog bastard?"
"Huh? I
dunno."
Feo didn't seem
interested in Kevin and simply brushed off Mars's question.
As a result, Mars was
stopped by Feo's intervention. In the meantime, Shina and Tom regained their
posture, and the situation was about to shift to a confrontation between
Shina's team and Mars's team.
Nozomu activated Flash
Step, glancing at the scene where Mars and the others were confronting Shina
and her team. He charged directly into the area where Irisdina and the others
were fighting. His target was Camilla, who was in charge of Lisa's team's rear
guard.
(Top priority is a
hit-and-run. After that, I'll regroup with everyone and defeat Shina's team!)
Nozomu's aim was to
stir up Irisdina's battle situation and then withdraw. In short, it was to
simply disrupt this battle.
Camilla changed her
target from Irisdina and Tima to Nozomu. She unleashed a barrage of ice spears,
"Icicle Dance," at him.
"Hmph!"
Nozomu slipped through
the gaps in the icicles with Flash Step - Curving Dance. The grazing ice spears
carved lacerations into Nozomu's body, but Nozomu continued to push forward
without stopping.
"What! What's
going on!!"
Camilla was flustered that
her magic couldn't stop him. The next moment, her magic ran out, and no more
ice spears were launched.
Nozomu, who had
entered the range, raised his katana, but at that moment, a shadow cut in
between Nozomu and Camilla.
"Well well, you
can do a little something, huh, Nozomu."
"!!"
Ken, who had cut in,
swung his longsword with the same momentum. Nozomu instinctively raised his
katana to block, but he was greatly blown away.
"Kuh!"
Nozomu managed to
regain his posture in mid-air while being blown away and landed on the ground.
However, Ken launched
an ice spear as a follow-up attack. Nozomu managed to dodge the approaching ice
spear by rolling on the ground. In the meantime, Ken closed the distance and
swung his longsword.
"Kuh!!"
Nozomu raised his
katana, twisted his waist, and put all his strength into parrying Ken's slash,
then counterattacked with a return slash.
Ken twisted his body
to avoid Nozomu's katana, but Nozomu, unconcerned, struck his katana again.
However, that slash was easily blocked by Ken.
The two then engaged
in a blade lock. However, Nozomu, inferior in ability, was gradually pushed
back, and Ken's blade approached his eyes.
"Guuu!"
"Hmph..."
Against Nozomu, who
was desperately trying to push back, Ken wore a relaxed smile. This showed the
pure difference in their abilities, and regret and impatience welled up in
Nozomu's heart.
Why. Why! Why!!
Such helpless regret
tried to wash away the hesitation in Nozomu's heart.
Offensive ki
techniques like Phantom Void, and the release of his ability suppression.
They whispered to him
to release his power and crush them all right here, right now.
It's fine.
Swing it as you please. It'll be easier that way...
"!!"
The voice that
suddenly echoed in his head became a sweet temptation, trying to melt away
Nozomu's reason.
Nozomu tried to endure
the temptation by biting his lip. Perhaps because he bit too hard, the taste of
rusty iron spread in his mouth.
Perhaps pleased by
Nozomu's desperate expression, Ken showed a twisted smile that no one else
could see. With their faces close enough to hear each other's breathing, Ken
scoffed at Nozomu.
"Nozomu... you're
pathetic."
"!!"
"But honestly,
I'm surprised. That you're still survive in this exercise..."
Ken was truly
surprised that Nozomu was still in this exercise. However, his face was still
ugly and distorted, and his tone clearly contained contempt.
"But you can't
reach Lisa or me. You can't be by her side. It can't be helped, can it? You're
so weak and pitiful."
"!! Ken!
You...!!!"
"Well, let's end
this now. I have to hurry back to Lisa, and I can't spend all my time on you.
See you, Nozomu. You should really know your place and just go home quietly.
That's an advice from your 'best friend'..."
The moment he heard
those words, something snapped in Nozomu's head.
The surging rage from
deep within his chest ignited in an instant, like fire set to dry leaves.
"!!!"
Nozomu leaped
backward, pushing away with all his might. Ken also stepped back with a relaxed
smile.
"What are you
going to do by creating distance when you can't use magic?"
Ken, judging Nozomu's
actions to be meaningless, chanted a spell while scoffing inwardly.
A gigantic ice spear
appeared before his eyes. The massive ice spear, taller than Ken himself,
pointed its tip at Nozomu as if understanding Ken's intent.
Nozomu leaped
backward, sheathing his katana, and with all his might, he slammed and
extremely compressed ki into it as his rage commanded.
He activated Flash
Step the moment he landed. Nozomu charged straight at Ken.
"Haha! Have you
finally given up!?... Fine. You've been annoying anyway, so I'll end you
here."
Ken, with a cruel
smile, unleashed the ice spear. The launched ice spear flew unerringly towards
Nozomu.
"!"
Nozomu charged forward
regardless. Having finished forming the ki blade, he glared at the ice spear
approaching him.
The next moment, the
color of his vision changed.
Nozomu displayed
extreme concentration, drew his katana in the colorless world, aiming at the
ice spear approaching him.
"What!!"
The next moment, a cry
of astonishment escaped Ken's lips.
The ice spear he had
created with all his might was shattered in two by Nozomu's ki blade, crumbling
uselessly.
Nozomu didn't even
look at the ice spear he had just cut down, and charged at Ken, cutting through
the shattered ice fragments.
"You!!"
Ken swung his sword
down at Nozomu, who had charged at him.
He was flustered by
the unexpected situation, but Ken's body unconsciously swung his sword at the
precise range. Ken's longsword was longer than Nozomu's katana, and at this
range, Nozomu's blade still wouldn't reach.
Perhaps he himself
knew that, as Ken's face showed impatience, but the corners of his mouth
lifted.
However, that meager
composure was immediately blown away.
Nozomu slammed his
right foot into the ground and twisted his body. The next moment, with a
shocking explosive sound, Nozomu's body rotated at an impossible speed.
"What!"
Nozomu's katana, swung
like a flash, cut through Ken's surprised voice. Its blade struck down Ken's
blade, which he was about to swing down, and his blade pointlessly pierced the
ground.
The explosive sound
from before was the sound of the extremely compressed ki in Nozomu's katana
exploding. The release of ki, extremely compressed to an astonishing level,
instantly accelerated Nozomu's sword speed, accelerating it to a speed he could
never achieve normally.
Furthermore, Nozomu,
though swaying, twisted his body in the opposite direction and unleashed a
return strike.
Nozomu's blade
approached Ken's eyes; if it continued, it would surely slice Ken's throat and
kill him.
Nozomu watched the
scene of his swinging blade approaching Ken's throat in a world devoid of
color.
If this continues, I
can kill this guy! But...
The gruesome scene he
had caused flashed through his mind. The tragedy caused by wielding power
according to his impulses. And the nightmare he kept seeing. His blade slicing
through their bodies, himself just killing in the flames.
"!!
Aaaaaah!!"
Realizing what he was
about to do, Nozomu instinctively deflected the blade that was about to be
sucked into Ken's throat. However, he couldn't completely miss. His blade
sliced Ken's cheek.
"Ah!!"
"!! Ken!!"
Ken's face twisted in
pain from the cut on his cheek. Lisa, who had been exchanging blows with
Irisdina, heard his voice and charged at Nozomu. Her face was stained with
hatred, glaring at Nozomu with eyes that literally saw an enemy.
"Get away from
Ken!!"
Lisa activated the
Nivea's Demonic Hand, creating a massive fireball in her hand. She unleashed
the fireball she held in her hand at Nozomu, as if to directly strike him with
her hatred.
"Kuh!"
Nozomu instinctively
leaped sideways to avoid the fireball, but the exploding torrent of flame
rushed to engulf Nozomu.
"Nozomu!"
However, the Ravenous
Beast of the Wind Tunnel that flew from the side scattered the flames
approaching Nozomu. Furthermore, Tima activated her magic, and a wall of flame
appeared between Nozomu, Irisdina's team, and Lisa's team. In the meantime,
Irisdina rushed over to Nozomu.
"Are you
alright?"
"Y-yeah. I'm
fine."
Irisdina spoke to
Nozomu with a worried look. Her pale face, unsuited for a battlefield, and her
captivating jet-black eyes reflected Nozomu.
Nozomu couldn't look
into those eyes and instinctively averted his gaze.
"............"
"............"
Nozomu and Irisdina
were both speechless.
At that moment, the
wall of flame was blown away. Lisa and her team appeared from the lingering
embers of the flame, which danced and crackled.
"!!"
Lisa glared at Nozomu
with eyes filled with hatred. Behind her, Ken stood beside Lisa, also glaring
with hatred, as if to show that he belonged by her side.
When he saw her eyes
burning with anger, and his former best friend behind her, Nozomu's chest
ached, and an indescribable emotion welled up in his heart.
Grrr...
"!!"
However, Nozomu
instantly changed his expression at the voice of "that" echoing in
his head. He forcibly swallowed the dark emotions that had begun to well up and
tried to appear calm. At that moment, Irisdina made an unexpected proposal.
"Nozomu, why
don't we team up during this battle?"
"Eh?"
Nozomu was bewildered
by Irisdina's proposal. He had indeed promised to team up with her on the
second day, but for today, they were supposed to be enemies.
However, as Irisdina
said, it was certainly a better strategy to team up with Irisdina if they were
going to face Lisa and her team, and Shina and her team.
"... Is that
okay?"
Nozomu asked Irisdina,
confirming, and she nodded without hesitation.
"... Alright.
I'll be relying on you, Iris."
Nozomu accepted
Irisdina's proposal. Irisdina smiled with satisfaction at his response.
Nozomu was momentarily
captivated by that smile. The dark emotions that had been swirling in his chest
gradually subsided, replaced by a wildly pounding heart.
Lisa and Ken readied
their swords. Irisdina also readied her rapier, drawing closer to Nozomu.
At that moment, Nozomu
felt a warmth spreading from the core of his body. It was as if he could feel
Irisdina's body temperature. The burning heat in his body from earlier
gradually transformed into something warm.
Nozomu, who had
slightly relaxed his cheeks at the ticklish sensation and readied his katana,
was suddenly enveloped by an explosive torrent of ki.
"Wh-what!?"
Nozomu and the others,
though flustered by the sudden event, confirmed the released ki. Mars and
Shina's teams, who had been fighting, all looked in the same direction.
"... You guys.
You really did it..."
The one emitting the
ki was Kevin, who should have been swallowed by Mars's technique.
Perhaps unable to
control his excessively heightened ki due to anger, ki was leaking from his
body.
"You've been
making a fool of me all this time..."
In response to his
anger, an immense amount of ki gathered in Kevin's hands. His arms creaked and
trembled slightly. The sight resembled a dam about to burst.
Kevin's anger-filled
eyes pierced Nozomu.
"First, you,
bottom-feeder. Next, you half-assed bastard, I'll crush you so you can never
stand up again!"
The next moment,
Kevin's body transformed. Hair began to grow on his body, and his muscles
bulged. His mouth protruded forward, literally transforming into the face of a
wolf.
It was the same
ability as Mimuru's, "Beastification."
The Beastification of
the Silver Wolf tribe, like the Wildcat tribe, involved an increase in physical
abilities and an increase in ki capacity.
However, just as he
seemed to be fully beastifying, a sudden impact, as if thrusting up from the
ground, shook the area.
"Whoa!!"
"What!? An
earthquake!?"
Everyone present was
flustered by the sudden event. Kevin, who had been about to beastify, also
panicked and released his beastification.
As countless cracks
appeared in the ground, a foul stench began to waft through the air.
The next moment, the
ground peeled back, and it appeared from the rising earth. A gigantic body
comparable to a towering tree, and claws and fangs that could tear even
diamonds.
"Grrr..."
It let out a
gut-wrenching growl that resonated in their stomachs, and in a word, it was a
threat. A being that should almost never be seen in this place, a being at the
apex of magical beasts.
"Dragon..."
Someone muttered, as
if leaking the word.
But that dragon had a
very unusual appearance. One of its wings, which should have been used for
flying, was completely gone, and the membrane of the other wing was almost
entirely melted away. Its steel-like scales were peeled off in places, and some
parts of its muscles were exposed.
At that moment, the
dragon's eyes caught Nozomu and the others. Its eyes were also cloudy white,
clearly not the eyes of a living creature.
"Guaaaaaaaa!!!"
And then, a roar
echoed. Rotting gas and putrid flesh scattered, and the dragon spread its
decaying single wing. What was once a dragon, a being that should be called a
Corpse Dragon, attacked Nozomu and his team, still trying to quench an
unhealable thirst even in death.
-----
Thank you for my Patrons !!
[Platinum]
-
[Gold]
B random
DavidA
Nepheos
RobertJay
ShitaiNoKootoRyuu
[Silver]
Creris
Fred A.
Frédéric Bertrand-Hudon
Geral Aponso
Matthew Fraser
Anton Lim
Ctdela
Curious Panda
Joe Smith
Read Advanced Chapters only on my Patreon
-----
