Chapter 79: Open Classes (2)
The curtain is finally rising on Innocence Academy’s ‘open class’.
“The battles will be fought in a randomized order, regardless of grade, but I think you can expect a lot from this year’s first-year cadets.”
The academy’s headmaster, Juliut, turned his head and spoke to those seated in the audience.
The patriarchs of the Four Elements smiled at the mention of the first years but there was one who didn’t smile.
“Hmph, hmph…”
Cicely Windless, patriarch of House Windless, coughed. She was… worried about Lucia.
After Juliut brief explanation, the ceremony began quickly.
The number of cadets was large and in order to speed up the process of defeating the monsters, they would send monsters that matched the level of the cadets as much as possible.
In some cases, the cadets could even choose their monsters.
“The monsters for this open class were prepared by the Guild President.”
Juliut smiled as he politely pointed his palm at the Adventurer’s Guild President on the other side of the room.
The President smiles broadly. Then the voice of the instructor who was conducting the proceedings from beneath the coliseum echoes throughout the coliseum through the amulet of amplification magic.
“First up! Wow, a cadet from the four elemental families right from the beginning…Cadet Amon Caligus, Class A, Year 1!!!”
Following the instructor’s announcement, the coliseum erupts in cheers.
However, the instructor’s tone was a bit frivolous and the mood in the audience was a little chilly.
Soon, Juliut removes his glasses, wipes his brow, and gestures to the instructor across the room. He then speaks to the instructor, who quietly approaches him.
Sword Saint Chris scratched his head and spoke up in the silence that had fallen between the cheers.
“What’s the matter with everyone? It’s a festival, and a good one. Tell me, Juliut, who’s the master of ceremonies? I like him.”
At Chris’s question, Juliut turns his head.
“…My son, Edward.”
“Edward…? Edward is an instructor?”
“Well… It just so happened.”
“I didn’t know Edward had that kind of aura, but heh!”
“I suppose you could say that, but it’s been nearly ten years since you last saw Edward, so…”
Juliut and Chris’s conversation rambled on.
The other guests in the room are surprised to hear that the instructor, who had just been conducting a frivolous proceeding, is Juliut son, Edward.
The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Edward Klaus is the Black Bloods, but the men in the audience are no ordinary people.
Having seen war firsthand, they knew Edward by another name.
‘The Black Horned Hunter.’
Edward was a well kept secret, even from the general public since many demons were after him as the leader of a special anti-demon assassination unit.
The Alliance’s assassination squad had utilized Edward’s specialty, Illusion Magic, to assassinate many of the most powerful and known Black Horned Demons.
They had taken the heads of at least five black-horned demons.
Chris remembered Edward on the battlefield.
Kaen was ten years old then and Chris had left her in the care of a stranger and gone to battle.
Edward had been on his way back to camp, bundling up the heads of the demons he’d cut off.
‘He was such an emotionless kid back then,’ Chris thought to himself, ‘and now he’s a funny guy. I wonder if he’s undergone some kind of inner transformation.’
Chris briefly wondered if he should try to find Edward later and talk to him. Surely he would be quite surprised to learn that Edward was married.
Just then, a man walked into the center of the Colosseum. It was Amon Caligus.
Upon recognizing him, Jeras Clementine coughs once, then turned to Maxim Caligus, who was beside him.
“Hmmm… I heard that Amon got in trouble on his placement test, is that true?”
Jeras already knew that Zetto, a friend of his daughter, Yuri, had beaten Amon.
Although Zetto wasn’t even his son-in-law yet, he couldn’t help but brag about it.
Maxim Caligus, Shield of the Empire, glanced at Jeras.
“…He needed to be broken once in a while. I’m sure my son would have grown stronger.”
“I hope so.”
Jeras chuckles and the monster Amon must face enters the coliseum.
As Edward continues, it turns out that Amon handpicked the monster.
“An ogre… Sounds like a great opponent for Caligus’ earth magic.”
The president of the Adventurer’s Guild nodded his head in affirmation.
The ogre is twice the size of an orc, and naturally, his strength is incomparable to that of an orc.
Unlike orcs, ogres had a single horn on their heads and white skin. Of course, they were not much different from orcs in terms of ugliness.
The ogres’ weaknesses were that they were slow for their size and somewhat dumb but their destructive power was immense.
Maxim nodded wordlessly.
Amon enjoyed melee combat, so this would be a good opportunity to show off his skills.
The ogre stepped into the coliseum, holding a massive axe with a dull blade and as Edward snapped his fingers the illusionary spell on him broke…
-Awwww!!!
…the ogre roared, and the crowd cheered even louder.
The battle between the ogre and Amon began immediately but the ogre was unable to break through Amon’s tough gauntlets. It wasn’t the same as when Lycanthrope had nicked it. Amon had grown up.
Amon then drives his stone spear into the ogre’s shoulder blade with a loud bang and the Colosseum erupts in applause.
“As expected of my son.”
Maxim Caligus claps and smiles wryly.
“You’re calmer than usual, aren’t you?”
Cicely comments as she watches Amon fight.
At this, Hubert, the Chairman of the Academy, who had remained silent until now, raises his index finger and speaks up.
“Haha, Innocence Academy somehow manages to bring out the best in its cadets, and I’m sure this open class will be an interesting experience for you as well.”
Amon’s calmer demeanor was purely due to the fact that he had encountered the out-of-standard strength Zetto, but it was also due to the Academy, so it could be considered a credit to the Academy.
– Boom!!!
Amon crushes the ogre’s skull with his Earth Gauntlet, ending the battle then raises his gauntlet, covered in the ogre’s blood, in a triumphant display of House Caligus might.
Once again, Amon is applauded and the dignitaries in the audience turn to speak to those around them.
‘As expected of a Caligus.’
Chris, on the other hand, is quietly thinking.
He is crazy about swords so if it wasn’t a sword he didn’t care.
After Amon’s battle, the other cadets’ battles quickly followed but most of the battles ended quickly.
The only exception was a third-year cadet who felt so overwhelmed by Amon’s defeat of a first-year ogre that he chose the same ogre and died.
Swordsmen often made appearances as well and one paladin, who could be considered a rarity, caught the eye of the vice-captain of the Silver Winged Knights in the audience.
The paladin carried a massive two-handed sword and his choice was a horde of undead ghouls.
Chris lowered his eyes to watch but the battle ended rather sourly since the ghouls were no match for the divine power and the deputy leader of the Silver Winged Knights discussed something with a companion.
Chris clicked his tongue slightly. He was a cadet, after all, so he didn’t resent the lowering of his eyes but his expectations were rising for the ‘blind swordsman’ who had defeated Kaen.
If he doesn’t live up to his name either…Chris might be a little disappointed.
‘I guess I’ll just have to assume that I came to see Kaen’s face then.’
Maybe he was going to kick Kaen’s ass for suffering a defeat at the hands of a guy like that.
Time passed, and it was now afternoon.
The Colosseum was tired since there were many cadets but among them only a few stood out.
“…You’re all tired, aren’t you? You’ll be given a break after this battle, and I’m sure you’re hungry and wondering where you’re going to eat. But for now, you’ll need to keep your eyes open and your attention focused, if you don’t want to lose her.”
At this point, Edward, who has taken over as master of ceremonies, suddenly livens things up.
“This cadet is not well known, but I, Edward Klaus, assure you that her name will be spread across the continent in the days to come. When I saw her, I wondered…Why on earth did she come to the Academy? Because it seemed to me, at least, that she had nothing to learn here.”
The people in the room might have thought he was frivolous at first, but he had a knack for holding their attention.
Everyone was wondering who she was, even Chris.
“A supernova that has risen in the Innocence Academy, one of the strongest cadets in Class A, if not the strongest. Please give her a big round of applause, Cadet Aizel Ludwig, Class A, first year.”
After Edward’s lengthy introduction, a rather petite girl with long platinum hair that gives her an air of mystery entered the arena.
Her cynical expression drew the attention of everyone in the Colosseum but of those in the audience, only Headmaster Juliut and Chairman Hubert knew who she was.
Her face was literally a new face and most of the guests wondered how strong could this girl, whose name he had never even heard, be for Edward to make such an assessment.
Everyone in the audience wondered as the monster she was going to face appeared.
The Aisin family’s patriarch, Izad Aisin, spoke for the “first time” at the event, as his eyes locked onto the monster that was crawling out of the coliseum.
“…A wyvern?”
It was a wyvern, a so-called subspecies of dragon. Of course, if you said that in front of a ‘real’ dragon, you’d be cut to the bone.
The only thing it had in common with a dragon was that it was a lizard with wings… but that didn’t make it any less formidable.
While it doesn’t have the brute force of a dragon, it has a reputation for being quite tricky and unruly among many monsters.
The Wyvern’s massive frame crashes into the Colosseum. It’s the largest of the monsters, and by far the strongest. Especially since the wyvern could fly into the air, it instantly formed a circle around the Colosseum and struck with a snarl.
“Finally…Chairman Hubert specially ordered this one. It’s the first time we’ve ever captured a wyvern, so Instructor Edward personally assisted in the capture process. We’ve captured two wyverns in total, and the smaller of the two will be facing this first-year cadet. I’m looking forward to it, hahaha!”
The president of the Adventurer’s Guild boisterously explained as the people sitting in the honorary seats were feeling a bit perplexed.
Even if Edward’s ability to use illusionary magic on a wyvern that was said to be somewhat resistant to magic was a given, they were surprised that Aizel was so unconcerned with the wyvern in front of her.
Aizel was just thinking about something else and even now, her mind was filled with thoughts of the curse on Zetto.
She had found a demonic curse that was very similar to the one in the fairy tale she had read last night.
Curses were usually lifted through a “dispel” or by forcibly erasing them with vast amounts of divine power.
Luckily, the book also described the process. However, the method was not pleasing for Aizel.
‘The process is like kissing your beloved…?’
Aizel repeated the words to herself.
How a demonic curse could be involved in human emotions… she couldn’t believe it.
She didn’t know if it was because it was a curse from a fairy tale, or if the author of the fairy tale had borrowed it.
As she pondered this, Edward, standing beside her, whispered, “Shall we begin?” and snapped his fingers.
The wyvern’s illusionary spell was broken.
– KEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!
The wyvern’s ferocious howl echoes through the Colosseum but there is no cheering in the Colosseum.
The crowd is overwhelmed with what should be a natural human emotion.
Even though they knew they were safe and even though the lines were drawn, they felt ‘fear’ as they wondered if this slender girl was capable of killing a wyvern.
“You’ll be safe with Instructor Edwards, so why don’t you all stop looking like that and enjoy the ride.”
Hubert’s muffled words broke the silence.
Aizel, who had been standing in front of the wyvern, pulled a short rod from her arm.
As she imbued the rod with mana, it began to crackle and change shape as in an instant, it transformed into a brilliant golden spear and the eyes of those in the Coliseum are drawn to the sight.
‘The Spear of Destruction…’
Seeing this, Hubert smiled bitterly and bade farewell to the weapon.
“Hmph…?”
Chris wished he had a sword that could transform like that.
He was serious and was even thinking of visiting a famous dwarven blacksmith.
Meanwhile, Aizel, with her spear drawn, was seething with irritation.
Kissing the one she loved to break a life-eating curse was fairly straightforward and that was a good thing, even for her.
If kissing Zetto wasn’t about her own desires, if it was just about fulfilling his curse, then it was a win-win for her but that was only when it was he, Zetto, whom she loved.
‘What if…What if…What if… kissing him doesn’t break the curse…?’
Aizel muttered to herself.
The next moment, the wyvern’s wild tail was pointed at her, and with a crackling spark, Aizel’s newest weapon was airborne.
Now there was a good one to take out her frustration on.
Soaring over the Colosseum in a matter of seconds, Aizel prepares for an all-out assault.
– Boom!!!
The golden spear flashes with sparks and Aizel immediately brings the spear down on the wyvern’s head…
…with a loud crack, the wyvern’s head crashes to the ground.
– Kiiiiing!!!!!
The spear is followed by a flash of lightning and the light is so brilliant that it gives the illusion of darkness, even in broad daylight.
The electricity flowing from the wyvern’s head was overwhelming, and it eventually escaped from his body, forcing Edward, who was standing nearby, to leap backwards.
Soon, the wyvern’s body began to smolder from the electricity that burned it to the bone, and the smell of burning began to fill the Colosseum.
-Clap clap clap!!!
The sound of someone clapping echoed through the silence of the Colosseum jolted the crowd out of their daze. Soon, a loud roar erupts, and the Colosseum is filled with applause.
With a single blow Aizel has struck down the fierce wyvern and the cadets and outsiders alike marveled at her power but Aizel, however, was not pleased.
‘If the curse is not broken, then Zetto is in love with another woman… That means she has to kiss him to save him…?’
Aizel wondered if what she felt in his heart was a curse, and if it would be broken even if she kissed Zetto.
None of these things were certain, but they were enough to shake Aizel to the core.
Turning sharply away from the wyvern and walking out of the coliseum, Aizel’s icy gaze fell on Zetto in the stands.
My Zetto.
How could he be in love with anyone else? The curse would be lifted, of course.
Right, Zetto?