Jezel felt anxious.
‘I was short-sighted.’
I would use even external connections for Oknodie to uncover the darkness of the Foundation.
I had planned for the future, but unexpected obstacles hit me in the present.
“Jezel, don’t fall behind! You have to speed up, even if it’s a struggle!”
“I know, Isabel!”
Jezel’s stamina was the lowest even in the Upper Class.
I could confidently say I was in last place.
I was already slow, but I had some faith.
Even if I came in last in this lecture, I could make up for it in other subjects!
But variables arose.
A massive participation of Second-Year students.
The unknown penalty from losing my name tag.
I might even lose additional grades.
That would be a painful mistake.
[Brooch of Equanimity]
[Undergarment of Breath Correction]
The artifacts I needed to carry on through the first phase of the Ironman Triathlon, running, had already started to flicker and activate one by one.
As my confused mind settled and my breath eased, paradoxically, my heart became heavier.
“Isabel, go ahead first.”
“Son Ohchun excitedly dashed out alone, but if you go without me, what will you do, Jezel?”
“If this continues, the Second Years will just continue to do good things. Or do you want to cheerfully receive penalties together?”
“Ugh… that’s cowardly. Making it so I can’t help my comrades.”
“Complete your share of the challenge. It helps me not carry the burden of someone being eliminated due to my inability.”
Isabel struggled internally between the loss she would face guarding Jezel and her loyalty.
To her, who had followed adults since a young age as a member of the adventuring party, comrades were a refuge they could lean on and everything.
“…I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.”
Isabel, unable to meet Jezel’s gaze, looked down and mustered strength in her legs.
Just when she was about to accelerate, dirt flew up beside her as someone got closer.
She didn’t hear it.
She didn’t notice.
Even though they had gotten so close.
Even though they were running with their own two legs.
The presence approached without making a sound, as if it were in a completely different space!
‘Is that a Second Year!?’
She gasped in surprise, looking up to find Oknodie blinking back at her.
“Oknodie! Why are you still here? You should be competing in the lead group!”
“If I just run off like this, even if Dorothy is fine, Isabel and Jezel will definitely get eliminated.”
Isabel felt embarrassed.
This admirable kid possessed the skill to compete for first place but had come down to the very back of the Upper Class for their comrades, yet she was actually ready to abandon Jezel.
But that was the reality.
If she didn’t give up, they would only get eliminated together.
Even now, she felt it.
The presence of Second Years chasing from behind.
If she relaxed her legs just a bit, they would inevitably catch up.
Those students were armed with a resolution that was on a different level than the First Years, showing no mercy as they would snatch name tags and drop them to the back of the group.
“Ah, watch out over there.”
“A Tree Monster!?”
The branches swaying in the wind suddenly dropped down, blocking her path.
Startled, she twisted her body to dodge, and finally, her field of vision opened up to see something.
Wriggle.
The sight of knot holes on tree trunks moving like a person’s eyes!
Unlike in practice, during the Midterm Exam, elements that interfered with the match had been added.
“If there are those kinds of obstacles, the Second Years…”
“The Second and Third Years already know about them. It’s only the First Years who are oblivious to the obstacles!”
“…I won’t ask where you got that information. Is there any way to avoid Jezel getting eliminated?”
“Of course! I came here to use it as well.”
Jezel recalled one of the rumors about Oknodie.
A mob of aspiring knights from the Lower Class.
The story of the so-called Black Knight Mob, who never took off his armor.
While his effort was admirable, it had indeed become a burden.
He didn’t want to follow in Mob’s footsteps.
“Little lady. If that’s just an excuse to console me, it’s unnecessary trouble.”
Oknodie bent his stubbornness toward Jezel, who was puffing up her pride.
“Shall I carry you on my shoulder?”
“…I’ll just follow on my own feet.”
*
Hestia felt annoyed.
The branches obstructing her path were nothing compared to the Tree Monster.
What troubled her, surprisingly, were the Second-Year seniors who should have been behind.
“We were definitely leading, but how are those seniors appearing before us all the time?”
With her overflowing stamina trained on the battlefield, she thought for sure the Second Years wouldn’t be able to catch up.
But lo and behold, after running for about 20 minutes, the situation began to change.
The students who were leading started appearing before her or leaping down from trees to ambush, surprising them from behind rocks.
“Ka-ha-ha! I don’t care about the reason. There are a lot of targets I can shoot now!”
Bang bang!
Gikoku happily pulled the trigger of his revolver.
Since teaming up in Dragon Principal Omoshiroi’s lecture, Gikoku took the lead, blasting through paths.
Hestia also punched and hammered back every senior that rushed at her, sending them flying far away.
But there were too many.
Moreover, the Second Years had a tenacity that the First Years couldn’t match—once knocked down, the latter fainted with a yelp.
“Activate Barrier!”
“Activate Muscle Memory Technique Roll!”
Utilizing every defensive method to prevent immediate retirement, the Second Years pressed on in the race.
Initially, Lotto showcased the agility unique to the martial arts, but now was drained, looking miserable.
“Eeek! Please don’t leave me behind!”
“Huh? Why should I care? I have no business with weaklings.”
“Gikoku, don’t be like that. This isn’t the time for 1st Years to compete against each other.”
“Tch. How boring.”
“Think of Oknodie.”
“What does he have to do with this?”
Gikoku retorted bluntly.
Soon, she timidly asked.
“Will Oknodie dislike it if we leave Lotto behind?”
“He wouldn’t dislike it. He’s generally merciless to weak people.”
“What? Then it doesn’t matter.”
“Still, he won’t like it. He would learn by watching you. Do you want to make Oknodie look like a bad guy everyone talks about?”
“There’s no way. No one will ever do good things for those rats squeaking behind.”
Reluctantly, the three ran through the never-ending forest at Lotto’s pace, thinking he was nothing but a troublesome burden.
Lotto offered an enticing theory that might change their minds.
“I think we keep circling the same area.”
“What? No way! I’ve already learned the course multiple times with my body.”
“If memorizing the same course is a trap, that’s more convincing, right?”
In a regular match, that idea would have been nonsense.
But at Gift Academy?
It was persuasive!
“Look! There are three First Years!”
“Ambush!!”
“Full-scale attack!!”
A change began to dawn in the forest where their dash was continuing, intermittently interrupted by the Tree Monsters and the Second Years.
Like they had been waiting, Second Years rushed out in waves.
“I won! You losers!”
Gikoku cackled as he kicked the butt of a fallen Second Year.
Just as they advanced deeper into the woods, a dozen more appeared.
“I’m starting to run low on bullets.”
Gikoku’s laughter faded as she began to show signs of discontent.
As they advanced deeper, now there were twenty or thirty Second Years.
“I think we’re in deep trouble, huh?”
Even the cheerful Gikoku couldn’t pull the trigger as the numbers before them looked intense.
Moreover, that might not be the end of it.
“…Can you scout by climbing a tree for a bit?”
At Hestia’s request, Lotto grunted as he climbed up.
His sturdy thighs got snagged on the tree bark, ripping holes in his stockings, but after exhausting himself to match the running pace and engage in repeated skirmishes, Lotto didn’t care about the stockings.
Once he climbed high to look around, his sentiment intensified.
“Good grief.”
The forest path arranged in a circle.
All around the sparsely dotting open ground were Second Years waiting for First Years.
While the First Years were lost on the circular track, the Second Years rapidly seized their exit routes.
Unbelievably, the way out of the forest started from the gigantic tree in the center to a staircase that led down to the ground and the carriage. How on earth could they break through to get there?
“How’s it?”
“It’s like this.”
Lotto climbed down, drawing the structure of the forest and the ambush positions of the Second Years with sticks so Hestia and Gikoku could see.
There was a reason this long-duration match was scheduled for 12 hours.
Hestia suddenly recalled.
Regarding Oknodie, who was weaker in strength compared to her, lesser in archery than Skola, and left one scratching their heads at his second-place position.
The secret behind him rising as a shared top student was not outstanding combat power, but rather outstanding wisdom.
-Among you, some may be stronger than those who have passed, possess excellent technique, and have outstanding combat power. Yet, all those are outside the main examiner’s interest.
-The wise surpass the strong, and if lacking in wisdom, then one must have outstanding combat power to progress. A score of 100 points is the mark that proves this.
Examiner Minerva for the entrance exam had also said so.
Wisdom is more important than strength.
They had believed only in stamina and had run heedlessly, but stamina without wisdom led them to move faster and farther than anyone, circling through the trees.
Thanks to that, they couldn’t read the movements of the Second Years.
By the time they comprehended the situation, those who thought they were in front found themselves falling behind.
“Oknodie is probably trapped somewhere in the forest, right?”
“I don’t think so.”
The wisest among the participants from the border region of Group A during the entrance exam had been Oknodie.
Hestia’s thoughts were soon proven by a ridiculous scene unfolding just across the forest.
“Wha? Wait a moment. The forest is moving.”
“The forest is moving? What nonsense are you talking about? Do we look like we’re in the mood for jokes?”
“I’m serious!”
With nothing else to do, Lotto was climbing up to scout again when Hestia, using her excellent jumping ability, and Gikoku, using the skills from her days as a crew member sailing, quickly reached the top of the tree far faster than Lotto.
Watching the two, Lotto felt the unfairness of his earlier struggle to climb and sank into despair, but their interests had moved away from him.
“It’s the Tree Monster. Why is it moving?”
“Look! Someone’s leading the Tree Monsters and smashing the Second Years, creating paths.”
“Huh? That’s…”
Accustomed to the flow of battle, Hestia identified the leading figure, and Gikoku, who had sharpened her eyesight while doing pirate work, recognized the identity.
“It’s Oknodie.”
