Chapter 55: Explosion
Myself, Amon, Lucia, and the last cadet to enter, a man named Crank sat in front of a map in the operations room.
Crank had a large shield strapped to his back.
‘Looks like a tanker…’
That would make two tankers in the group, including Amon. This was never a good combination. Maybe I should use Amon as a dealer instead of a tank.
“Hmmm.”
Crank coughed in his rickety chair, he had a plan.
I was naturally excluded, since I couldn’t see the map, and Amon had told me bluntly that he wasn’t good at planning.
In Lucia’s case, she said, “Can I, can I, can I make a plan…?” At this point, everyone had no answer and moved on.
That left Crank.
“Second place isn’t so bad, is it?”
Crank was not the only one unsure of the plan, and he spoke in a quiet voice as he studied the map.
“Mandragora has no use for me.”
“Well, I’m afraid the same can’t be said for me… Tasteless…”
Amon replied to Crank’s question, followed by Lucia.
He and Lucia were from the Four Elemental families and they had been fed all sorts of elixirs since they were children, so it was hard for them to see the effects of mandragora.
“If we come in second, I won’t need it. Then there’s the matter of the Labyrinth… Zetto, you can eat it.”
Amon glanced at me and said.
“If that… if that happens, I guess you can have mine if you want, because I’d be useless anyway…”
Lucia trailed off and hung her head.
‘Everyone’s so motivated, I was thinking of just going for first place and swapping rewards with second place…’
This changes things.
Amon and Lucia will give their share of the mandragora, and if I split it equally with Crank, I’ll still have two mandragoras.
‘This means I’m going to have to go for second place as planned.’
It’s just a matter of not letting it show.
It was unfortunate for my teammates, but it was a difficult combination for us to get third place, let alone second place. Even if we aimed for first place, there was no guarantee that we could do it.
“Then it’s useless for you guys if you don’t get first place. But can we sell the weapons from the armory? I need some big money right now…”
Crank said this as the group’s goal was inevitably first place.
Amon glared at Crank, then spoke up.
“I thought the weapons in the armory were forbidden to be sold, that it was against the spirit of the Academy. It’s a tradition that goes back decades and centuries, and I don’t think it would be easy to break. I’d like to donate a weapon to the Academy someday before I die.”
“Hmm… I’m in a hurry, but if that’s the case…”
Crank grimaces at Amon’s answer.
I didn’t know about Amon or Lucia, but Crank, a commoner, might need the money.
‘They certainly don’t sell at the auction house.’
The weapons selected from the armory were listed as unsellable items in the game.
I don’t know if there was a ‘black market’ where you could sell unsellable items, but it was too risky to enter the black market at this level.
In the black market, you could encounter powerful villains quite often so you had to avoid them as much as possible.
It was more likely that Crank was having financial problems. If so, I might as well take second place and buy the mandragora from him.
“More than that, I suppose it’s a matter of being able to enter the armory…”
Amon glanced at the piece of paper on the map that had been given to him by Edward when Crank entered. It listed the composition of the other groups.
“Okay, so maybe group one, but groups three and four look strong…”
Crank scratched his head.
Group 3 didn’t really have anyone else, but they had Aizel, and Group 4 had Yuri and the heir to the Aisin family.
Unlike our group, Group 4 had two people who were worthy of the name of the Four Elemental Families.
Crank didn’t seem to be very good at organizing so I suspect he was forced into the role.
I figured I might as well do something about it, so I spoke to Crank.
“Did you say that on the map that we’re close to group 3 and 4?”
“Yeah…..Looking at the group composition, I’m guessing the instructor was trying to balance things out.”
The map showed that Groups 2, 3, and 4 were clustered together in a fairly large forest, with only Group 1 separated from the others.
“So… Why don’t we go ahead and take on Group 1?”
At my suggestion, Crank immediately looked at the map. Then he raises his voice as if he’s spotted something.
“…I guess that would work, since we’re the closest to Group 1.”
“I’m guessing they’re coming toward the forest where the rest of the groups are. Even if they start farther away, they’ll want to keep an eye on things. Do you think there’s any high ground on their way to us?”
Crank looked at the map, pointed to a spot on the map, and said to me in a shaky voice.
“…How about we go up to the high ground?”
I suggested, tapping the map.
“You mean we go up to the high ground and attack first…?”
“Even if they don’t pass directly under us, we’ll still be able to see where they’re going… and then we can hit them from behind.”
Amon and Crank nodded.
“Well, then, I think we know what we’re going to do… we’re going to head out of the woods, out of sight of Groups Three and Four, and then we’re going to head straight for the high ground and wait for Group One.”
I explained.
We’re going to let Teams 3 and 4 fight each other in the woods, eliminate Team 1 beforehand, and then fight the winner of Teams 3 and 4.
Our opponents would be inexperienced first-year cadets so I don’t expect them to have a great strategy. It was like that in the game too.
[Disciple, disciple… Didn’t you want to eat the Mandragora…? Isn’t it to have me as a weapon…?]
Sierra’s worried voice echoed in my head as she watched me. Apparently, seeing me planning so diligently made her think that I was truly aiming for first place.
But she was right, I didn’t need more weapons.
What’s the point of having weapons that you can’t sell or use?
I could only smile weakly.
***
The small-scale mock battle started immediately after the planning ended.
We entered an illusion spell, and the spawn location was the same as the information on the map so we quickly and quietly made our way out of the forest.
We didn’t even feel anyone following us as we exited the forest and made it to the high ground. The rest of the group, except for me, crouched down on the edge of the cliff, looking down to see where Group 1 might be.
In the forest on the other side, we could hear the occasional roar from the battle between Groups 3 and 4. The occasional burning of a few trees indicated that Yuri was on a rampage.
With no need to look down the cliff, I sat on the ground, relaxing in the cool breeze.
“What if… What if group 1 is scared and not moving…?”
Crank, who had been looking down the cliff, spoke up, his voice filled with anxiety.
“I don’t think I’d move if I were them… That’s why I didn’t understand this plan when I first heard about it…”
“Ha… Lucia, do you think all the cadets are like you? I’m surprised a coward like you is attending the academy.”
“Ugh…”
Lucia blurted out after Crank’s words, prompting Amon to scold her.
While this small talk is going on, Crank, who has been quietly looking down, calls out.
“There they are…! They’re here…!”
Everyone’s attention is drawn to the cliff at the sound of the group’s arrival.
“Why are they coming…? Aren’t they scared…?”
When Lucia spotted the group, instead of crying, she became angry at them and spoke in a very low voice, so it was impossible for Amon to hear her.
Amon, who was watching Lucia, sighed and turned around to look at me.
“If we’re going to attack, now seems like a good time. With our luck, they’re passing just below the cliff.”
“That’s good news, then let’s get going.”
I grinned, dusted off my clothes, and stood up.
“Miss Lucia, please.”
Lucia jumps to her feet at my call.
Even if we attacked from high ground, we weren’t a large group, and the three of us, excluding Lucia, would have to fight in close quarters.
Even though Amon has a ranged blocking skill, it has a short area of effect and can’t do much more than block. Not to mention, my Reverse Heaven hadn’t yet reached the level of reaching down there.
However, I couldn’t leave everything to Lucia at such a time, so I decided it would be better to descend and attack Group 1 myself.
Lucia stands up and immediately casts a spell on Amon, Crank, and me.
The first spell she cast on us was a wind spell called “Touch of the Wind”. With this enchantment, we could float in the wind just before falling and not take fall damage.
“Something… I can feel the wind around me…? You’re amazing, Lucia!”
Crank grinned and gave Lucia a thumbs up after receiving the buff.
“Hehe… I’m technically a member of the Windless Family, too… This is no big deal…!”
Hearing the praise, Lucia smugly ruffled her short hair.
“You’re making a big deal out of a single buff magic…”
Amon, who was watching, clicked his tongue.
In this world, buff magic was nothing special and any skilled mage could do it.
“I’ll leave the signaling to you.”
I said, standing at the edge of the cliff and turning my head toward where Amon was.
A moment later, Amon stood next to me, looked down, and…
“Now!”
…gave the signal.
I, Amon, and Crank jumped on cue.
The cliff was higher than we thought, so it took us a while to fall.
I can see Crank, who was wearing a shield, falling down. We jumped at the same time, but I couldn’t figure out why he was falling first.
‘Because the shield is heavy?’
Common sense said no.
Crank was falling freely, as if he was just letting the wind carry him. At this rate, he would be the first to hit the ground.
And just like that, Crank was about to hit the ground.
“Huh?”
With my level 7 Superior Senses, I was able to hear Crank’s panic.
Thud!!!
The next thing I know, Crank falls and kicks up a cloud of dust.
‘I didn’t get the buff…?’
It was Lucia who gave the buff.
I thought that even if fighting against enemies was tough, she’d be able to buff us properly…I was wrong.
Lucia was the bomb.
Amon was following my orders so well that I didn’t factor in Lucia’s shenanigans.
As soon as I realized that Crank was down, I pulled out Sierra and smashed it into the cliff next to me.
The cliff gave a little resistance as it split, but… Sierra was too sharp, and I had to give up on stopping the fall completely.
Boom!!!
Next, Amon, who was falling faster than me, hit the ground.
He had apparently created a gauntlet just before the fall, so he wasn’t dead.
I decide to fall into the nearby trees so I kick off the cliff and land squarely in the trees.
My body rolled around as I was hit and poked by countless branches and finally, I was able to fall to the ground.
“Ugh…”
A slight pain flashed through my body as I stood up.
[The spell didn’t trigger……What kind of spell was that Lucia girl casting…?]
Sierra was also somewhat puzzled.
Pushing myself to my feet, I leapt out of the bushes and headed for Amon.
I found Amon in a handstand with his gauntlets stuck to the ground and the sound of my footsteps jolted him out of his ridiculous position.
As soon as Amon regains his senses, he tries to pull his gauntlet out of the ground.
Struggling to keep his feet on the ground, Amon looks up in frustration and shouts.
“Lucia you bitch!!! Get down here now or I’ll give you a stone shower on your disgusting face!!!”
Amon was furious and the other members of Group 1, who were a few feet away, heard Amon yelling and ran over.
“What are they doing over there…?”
“If it’s Zetto and Amon, aren’t they Team 2?”
“I think they were trying to attack us!”
Their panic at the sudden turn of events is palpable but they hadn’t attacked yet, so we had a moment to catch our breath.
Lucia’s voice came from the top of the cliff, looking down.
“Zee, I’m going down now…!”
The next thing I know, Lucia, the cause of everything, is falling off the cliff.
“”……””
Lucia’s reply makes the situation even more incomprehensible, and the group watches in awe as she falls, holding on to her skirt to cover her panties.
Just before she touched the ground, a gentle breeze blew in and lifted her up in an enveloping embrace, and her feet touched the ground softly and lightly.
“You got it right this time…? You’re really… Ha…”
Amon sighed, not taking his anger out on Lucia, and focused on retrieving the gauntlet that was still embedded in the ground.
“I’m sorry… I should have cast ‘Touch of the Wind’… I seem to have lost the Blessing of the Wind…Where is Mr. Crank…?”
Head down and sobbing, Lucia looks around for Crank and when she finds him, she runs out screaming.
“…Mr. Crank!!!”
Lucia looks at Crank from a distance and sees that he’s spewing blood from his mouth.
He’s probably about to die.
It looks like he didn’t make it. Maybe he fell on his shielded side and still died.
Luckily, the illusion was set to be painless, so it didn’t seem to hurt.
“Lucia… I was happy for a moment… I don’t know if it was a blessing from the wind or a touch… Kuluk…”
“Mr. Crank, please don’t die, please don’t die, what about the armory…!”
While Crank and Lucia are having this conversation, Crank’s body turns to ash and begins to scatter.
“Please give me my share…”
Crank’s last words were fondly remembered, and he was completely reduced to ash.
As I watched, I was too dumbfounded to speak.
One of our four members was dead before they even had a chance to fight.
“They already have one dead, we have the advantage in numbers!”
“Form up!”
No longer was the group standing still and they had already prepared for battle.
“Fuck… What the hell?”
Amon, whose gauntlets had never come off before, was muttering profanities and getting impatient.
As I watched him, I spoke up.
“Why don’t you release the gauntlet?”
“I’m not sure if that’s a good idea, since it’ll take a while to make the gauntlet again.”
Is he referring to the spell cooldown?
Certainly, without the gauntlets, the melee combat that Amon prides himself on might be a little more difficult.
On the other side, Lucia cowered in the spot where Crank had disappeared. She was shocked that she had accidentally killed him.
It was only a mock battle, so she wasn’t really dead, but she couldn’t stand up.
‘A bomb is a bomb in the end…’
The thought crosses my mind that it would have been better to throw Lucia into the middle of the enemies.
“They’re losing it somehow! Now!”
“Everyone attack!”
“This is our chance to wipe out the asshole Four Elemental Families!”
“Ice Arrow!”
Needless to say, Group 1 didn’t wait for us to organize.
The four members of Group 1 began to charge at us, each in their own way.
We hadn’t counted on Lucia’s stupid mistake and at this rate, she’s probably going to die, and Amon won’t be able to escape more than a few injuries since he doesn’t have a gauntlet.
However, I was not helpless against group 1.
I had an idea so I stepped in front of Amon, who was struggling to pull the gauntlet off.
Boom!
I drew my sword from my waistband and parried an arrow that came flying at me. Then, turning to Amon behind me, I spoke in a low voice.
“…Give me three seconds.”