It had been a while since I exerted myself so forcefully, and my body felt incredibly refreshed.
“Ah~ that was fun!”
“…Fun? Ha. Hahaha. That’s all you have to say after obliterating the outdoors?”
“Wasn’t it boring for you, Senior?”
“I don’t know about fun, but my heart was racing.”
“Then that’s proof that it was fun!”
Exorcist Io turned around with a defeated expression, hands shoved into pockets.
“Io-sama?!”
“Are you not getting engaged with Oknodie?”
“I might still be possessed by the evil spirit. Look at that ominous power!”
“No, Oknodie might have been the one controlling the evil spirit! Isn’t it likely for a Dark Princess?”
“Shut up.”
Io glared at the students who were egging him on.
“Whatever class the Dark Princess is in, it’s certain that Oknodie has a sense of dignity.”
“A sense of dignity…?”
“Look at the grass around her.”
My surroundings?
Aha, he’s talking about how I controlled the area to ensure that Arcadia and Titosso wouldn’t get hurt, right?
The grass swept away in a 270-degree arc.
Depressions scattered about.
The devastation was neatly maintained in a safe zone of about 90 degrees behind me.
“He, he managed to block the backlash of power?!”
“Terrifyingly precise mana control!!”
“Truly a wicked sage who can extract even human souls…!”
As I watched the clueless seniors, Io chuckled and walked away.
“I’ll back off today. But next time will be different.”
Titosso, who locked eyes with him for a moment, was so shocked that he grabbed Arcadia’s collar to hide his face.
Io looked down at the rings on our hands and soon turned without lingering.
[[Ghost Exorcism] event completed.]
[5,000 points awarded as event success bonus.]
[Exorcist Io has become your adversary.]
[The upper function of Sensory Focus, Super Concentration, is now unlocked.]
[Electric Punch Experience +10]
[Charging Experience +5]
[Protecting Experience +5]
[Synesthesia Experience +1]
[Super Concentration Experience +1]
As a result, I received rewards twice.
Double the event!
*
The second-year students, weakly following Io, felt an odd familiarity with the unfamiliar path.
“Isn’t this the way to there?”
“Right. The criminal consultant Velocasio. That’s where he is.”
“I don’t want to get entangled with that guy anymore.”
The members of the Red Fanged Mushroom Cultivation Management Association hesitated and delayed their steps before bolting in the opposite direction of Io.
‘Cowards.’
I smirked inwardly, but Io didn’t stop them.
His intention was not for the small fries but to reach the one who had made him move through them, Velocasio.
Academy Production Department exclusive area.
The closed former factory district.
As I entered one of the abandoned factories, a sharp gaze flew at me.
I’m watching you.
As if issuing a warning.
Anyone with a weak heart wouldn’t dare to set foot here.
“How ridiculous.”
I already knew the identity of the wielder of that murderous intent.
A student who had taken on the role of secretary and bodyguard to protect Velocasio.
A henchman of the criminal consultant.
A cruel Cat Beastfolk, Deadcat.
Clang!
As I lightly pushed open the heavy steel door with one hand, the interior of the modified factory unfolded.
Large bags and drums filled to the brim, various materials scattered everywhere.
The wealth and assets amassed by Velocasio through his contract scam.
“Who dares to tread in Velocasio’s hideout… Hah! Exorcist Io!”
“Perfect timing. Lead the way. I’ve come to see him.”
The henchman who had rushed to chase away the intruder looked as if he’d seen a ghost.
Slowly, I followed behind him until I spotted a man reclining in a large chair with one leg up, twisting a spiky-ended staff with one hand to relieve his boredom. That man was Velocasio.
“Go ahead.”
The henchman hastily dashed out through the opposite entrance, fearing even a glance.
“This was your doing.”
“I don’t know what you mean?”
“I heard that your capital situation is poor because you lost workers to the recently formed Dark Trading Company. Do you think you can continue your villainous acts while having me as your enemy?”
Under normal circumstances, no matter how senior he was, he wouldn’t care about a single student’s presence.
With ample manpower and capital, disrupting just one student’s class performance wouldn’t be difficult.
What if he monopolized the materials needed for class and controlled all but 0.1% of the goods so that only a specific student could access them?
‘I could even control that pesky student’s grades that hinder my business.’
This was the reason Velocasio was able to maintain the [Contract Scam Business] even while second-year upper-class students existed.
However, with the emergence of the joint business [Dark Trading Company] from Arcadia and Jezel, the situation became complicated.
‘If I can’t monopolize the goods, no matter how much I gather, it will be useless. I can just buy from the Dark Trading Company.’
As a result, the stockpile painstakingly gathered with manpower and time became a burden.
The items collected in hopes of raising their value for monopoly ended up becoming unwanted commodities that needed to be disposed of quickly.
He had been thoroughly outplayed by first-years.
‘Then came a golden opportunity.’
The sudden wave of dark energy spread wildly.
This stirred up rumors about school parents who were operating without a license and got Exorcist Io moving.
Titosso was Oknodie’s friend.
If Io stepped in, Oknodie was naturally expected to intervene, and a clash ensued.
Overall assessments of Oknodie leaned toward being versatile and knowledgeable, yet opinions on sheer power cast a slight doubt.
He had passed the entrance exam with cleverness and wisdom before showcasing strength!
Surprisingly, regarding raw power alone, he might be below average among the first-year upper class.
If that was the case, it also meant there was a chance for Io from the second-year upper class.
It was a seemingly perfect plan.
However, the words that came out of Io, who came looking for him, were completely different.
“What were you thinking, pitting me against that little monster? You weren’t trying to get rid of me because I was a hindrance to dealing with artifacts, were you?”
“It’s a misunderstanding. I did intend to take out Oknodie, but I never thought you would lose.”
Oknodie was strong.
A wielder of Dark Mana.
The ability to extract human souls with beads.
A child destined to become a Dark Princess.
Countless rumors had been brushed off.
He was just an 11-year-old kid in the first year.
I had dismissed it as exaggerated rumors spread by the Dark Trading Company.
The reality was different.
“Oknodie defeated you?”
“Not quite. If he had entered Charging Level 2, he could have.”
“Then what’s the issue?”
“The amount of dark mana he possesses is troubling.”
“…Dark mana isn’t naturally increasing mana, is it?”
“Even considering that, the amount was still concerning. If he had continued charging just a bit longer, that kid might have self-destructed, no matter how high his mana control was.”
Dark mana has commonalities with the negative energy wielded by ghosts, so as an Exorcist, he possessed some level of knowledge.
In Io’s judgment, Oknodie was on the verge of dying from the mana surge he initiated before the engagement.
Using more power would become uncontrollable.
He might die.
The person in question would not lack the sense of that kind of crisis.
He kept raising the output without stopping.
Like a person whipping a carriage to accelerate rather than slowing down to avoid one coming at him.
“That kid is a monster worse than a ghost. A creature that relentlessly drives itself to the brink of death, ignoring warnings from its survival instincts.”
“…What?”
“I can catch ghosts. I can knock out someone possessed by a ghost. But a human trained by beings worse than ghosts is different. You cannot fix it with violence.”
Oknodie was a monster created by the Foundation.
In Io’s declaration filled with murderous intent, Velocasio realized he had turned a being he could not do anything about into an enemy.
He was on a level where he had the force of Io and the madness of Deadcat simultaneously.
Unlike Deadcat, who remained as his henchman and hunted his desired targets, Oknodie wasn’t even Arcadia or Jezel’s subordinate.
He could breach through the window and invade the hideout any moment.
“…State your desires, Io.”
“Artifacts should be eliminated. I have no intention of leaving an artifact with a student as dangerous as Oknodie. Cooperate to create an opportunity to dispose of artifacts.”
“Alright. But in return, you’ll have to do some errands for me for a while. If that’s the condition, I’ll cooperate.”
The two clasped hands, aligning their interests in needing to deal with the dangerous figure Oknodie.
“How do you intend to create an opportunity to dispose of Oknodie’s artifacts?”
“Wait just three weeks. The first semester midterm exam is about to start.”
“Indeed, the midterm exam.”
Io understood.
Recalling the midterm exam from last year when they were first-years, it was undeniable.
“It wouldn’t be surprising if a few students died in that exam.”
The first midterm exam of Gift Academy would be much tighter than a Mana Evaluation Test.
Even the top student of the first-year upper class wouldn’t easily pass.
This time it would become an exam where life was at risk, unlike just a difficult Mana Evaluation Test.
With 20 days left until D-day, the first semester enemy event to replace Hestia’s rampage event began to be generated.
