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129th Episode: Joint Training (3)

‘That day was truly hellish.’

Markray recalled as he strolled toward the arena.

After the baptism party at the Chain Silver Mansion, the reputation of the Layered Family began to plummet.

The venue was, of all places, an official party of the Chain Silver Family, known as the empire’s top aristocracy.

With various nobles and imperial associates gathered, it was only natural for the whispered rumors to spread far and wide.

Having caused a commotion in such a public setting, there was no way to hold one’s head high.

Eventually, amidst the ongoing slander, every organization cooperating with the family severed ties.

Moreover, they were expelled from the noble committee organized by the royal family.

Currently, the Layered Family maintains its existence solely due to the remaining assets and a few subjects in their territories.

However, even those would soon vanish, as the family’s power was not something the Layereds had built themselves.

‘If only the Crawler hadn’t been around…!’

It was by no means their fault. All that was left was a final struggle.

Just as the last glimmer of hope was about to extinguish.

‘But my performance now rests on the family’s everything.’

The final opportunity granted to the Layereds. Dubbed their last resort, it was Sir Jason’s plan.

If they could achieve that, Jason would reinstate them in the noble committee. The Layered family staked their own son, Markray, to fulfill that condition.

‘I thought I was going to die from the aftereffects… but I endured it. Now, there’s no rival before me!’

Under Sir Jason’s guidance, the mana treatment was administered. Despite hearing there would be side effects, they eagerly accepted it.

Though excruciating nerve pain accompanied it, Markray persevered. And he gained immense power.

‘With this power, even that guy, and the entire student body would be no match for me!

Thanks to that, overcoming the class designation exam and ascending to Class A was a piece of cake.

His revamped self, considering mana alone, was on par with the professors.

Moreover, for reasons unknown, having Jason as a supporter naturally led to entering the inner circle of Saint Nebia.

That allowed him to strut about proudly, even with the taint of the Layered Family clinging to him.

‘If I win this duel… next, it’ll be that bastard! I will definitely avenge myself!’

This time, unlike before, he felt strong.

Everything visible now looked like mere cans underfoot.

First, he would sweep away that white-haired can right in front of him, then it would be that bastard’s turn.

“Start!”

With the referee’s declaration, he immediately channeled mana into his hands.

The sensation of a dark entity creeping up from within was undeniably a blessing, not a curse.

Yes, he was certainly not proclaiming any falsehoods.

“I don’t know who you are, but your luck is beyond terrible.”

“….”

“Don’t blame me.”

The white-haired student was staring at him in silence. Aside from holding a wooden sword, there seemed to be no combat posture.

‘Why is he making no preparations?’

He could sense not even a hint of mana from his opponent. In contrast, he was fully prepared to cast spells.

It was the difference between a loaded gun and one that was lazily left uncharged.

Perhaps the fact that he was a year ahead was causing his opponent to underestimate him. Such ignorance would call forth defeat.

“If you’re going to blame someone, blame Radon Crawler!”

Black bullets, the intermediate spell ‘Black Ball,’ were rapidly created from his hand and fired.

Since it was a match, he needed to control his power, but when he had let loose in practice, it had boasted power capable of shattering enormous diamonds.

Yet, his opponent remained standing. If he ended up looking like a honeycomb, it would be his own fault.

“Ugh…!”

Markray, previously full of confidence, suddenly gasped for air.

If he hit that guy with a powerful destructive ‘Black Ball,’ it would be game over. But it needed to land first; otherwise, it was meaningless.

Just like right now.

“Die!”

Gathering mana to its maximum, Markray amplified the ‘Black Balls.’ His all-out assault flooded like a black rain.

Attacks that could not be blocked even with aura poured down, yet his opponent casually dodged them again.

“This can’t be happening!”

His movements were too quick to perceive. Why? His revamped body was supposed to be able to detect even swift entities.

“Who are you blaming?”

“…!!”

At that moment, a voice from behind sent chills down his spine. Not only had his opponent evaded everything, but he was now standing behind him.

“How did you…!”

“….”

This was no time to dawdle. He had to quickly conjure a magical barrier to minimize the damage…

Thunk!—

Suddenly, consciousness slipped away. The last thought was of a heavy impact before everything went black.

“Is this how I’ve been spoken to by a senior all along?”

Lyman Begilius, who had effortlessly brought down Markray, looked at him with indifferent eyes.

And the referee’s declaration of victory resonated through the air.

*

The morning session of the first-year joint training ended. Due to the sheer number of students, it was divided into morning and afternoon sessions.

Now finished, we could leisurely enjoy time in the plaza.

The defeat of the protagonists had already been expected.

Excluding the monstrous protagonist Lyman, it was a setup for significant troubles to come.

However, there was one character who uniquely hadn’t been defeated.

“I had a draw.”

Mary approached me with a blank expression. For her, usually full of excitement, it was quite the unusual sight.

“Now that the training’s over, why not cheer up?”

“Sure, compared to our losses, Mary is the best.”

Jenny and Luska comforted Mary, who was helplessly seated at a table in the plaza.

Ironically, it was they who needed comfort the most.

“Right, Radon?”

Jenny, sitting next to me, grabbed my shoulder. I knew Mary wasn’t just upset over the win-loss outcome.

“Thinking about it, weren’t your opponents a bit strange?”

“Huh?”

“All of them were somehow affiliated with Saint Nebia, weren’t they?”

The freshmen they fought during the training were members of the saint’s royal guard.

The saint referred to Nebia, whose royal guard members were known to possess extraordinary potential in the academy.

“How did it happen that all your matchups were against them?”

“Well, it’s natural for Class C to fight Class C, and Class A to fight Class A.”

They were assigned as opponents to maintain balance within the classes. Of course, I was unlucky to have drawn Princess Mirona as my opponent.

In contrast, their matchups were fairly appropriate.

“Though I think something felt off when I fought as well. When I faced that guy, all my fighting spirit just vanished.”

Luska recounted her encounter against a freshman.

The name was Hulk Mangelo. The more she fought, the more ominous her feelings grew.

“And Mary, you too seemed to suddenly lose your strength while we were fighting.”

“…Oh!”

As Luska touched on this accurately, Mary raised her head and stared intently at Luska, almost as if she sensed something from her words.

It seemed like they shared a mutual understanding, as Luska also gazed at her with seriousness.

Snap!—

Suddenly, Mary grabbed air next to Luska’s face. It was a startling action, but in reality, it was nothing unusual.

“Finally caught it! A bee!”

“Ha… that makes sense.”

Our expressions twisted in unison as Mary gulped down the bug she had caught.

“Ugh! Now I can finally speak freely!”

“What do you want to say?”

“Well, I was kind of the same. My body started feeling sluggish when I fought that friend too.”

The freshman Mary faced was named Lavenda Brench.

A girl with deep pink hair, she was one of the royal guard members alongside Lenka Usran and Mangelo.

“How should I put this… it felt like I inhaled some kind of pesticide.”

“Pesticide? What nonsense are you talking about?”

Luska looked perplexed upon hearing this. Even though she knew it was Mary’s weakness, it was still hard to comprehend.

“But I wasn’t entirely sure. I hadn’t actually inhaled any gas.”

“Truly bizarre individuals.”

While Luska and Mary were puzzled, Jenny seemed unaffected by such thoughts.

“But questioning it wouldn’t do any good, would it? Ultimately, the fact remains that their strength surpassed ours.”

Except for Mary, the two believed they were outmatched in power. If their rumored potential was indeed greater, it explained much.

“Let’s not entertain any odd thoughts. Oh, the afternoon competition is about to begin!”

As our break time wound down, Jenny stood up suddenly. In the afternoon, her friend Crona was scheduled to compete.

“Is that why you’re so excited?”

“Of course! It’s Crona’s turn. If I don’t watch, she’ll be really disappointed.”

Besides that, Crona was running as a candidate for student council president. I needed to cheer her on to ensure she doesn’t show a humiliating side.

“Radon, do you want to watch too?”

“I’ll just stay here. You all can go, but I feel like she wouldn’t want me there.”

“Hmm… Okay. See you later!”

All of them except me dashed back to the underground gym, but I didn’t follow them.

“Let’s check on Jason’s state.”

Currently, it was safer to avoid the arena.

The freshman set to face Crona was also a royal guard member, the final one: Slave Replicant. He always wore a cherubic smile.

From the start of the match, that face would mesmerize the students. To make matters worse, he would devastate Crona, showcasing his overwhelming presence.

Enthralled by his remarkable looks and strength, the students cheered for him.

Naturally, the protagonists’ group was the only one opposing this, but as the losers, their opinions were dismissed.

Moreover, their pride as seniors was jeered at because they couldn’t defend it.

‘If I had been in the underground gym, I might have been there with them as well.’

Aside from Lyman, all the main characters would bear the label of losers. Gaining recognition from the freshmen like that would lead to nothing good.

‘Of course… but that also depends on Jason being the referee.’

Thus, I needed to see how Jason was doing.

Knock knock—

I tapped on the door of the academy’s infirmary. As the door opened, the esteemed Professor Stella greeted me with a smile.

“Ah, Radon! What brings you here?”

“I came to check on Instructor Jason’s condition. Is he inside?”

I cautiously parted the curtains covering the bed. However, there was not a single patient lying down.

“Oh, he has already gone to the underground gym. He probably returned to referee.”

In the end, he would once again be involved in the matches. Truly, the recovery speed of the strong was nothing short of miraculous.

‘It seems the story will flow just as in the original.’

Since Jason created that royal guard, it was clear whose side he would take during the matches.

*

The arena floor bore a massive web-like crack.

This was the first damage to the arena since the princess’s match.

The cause was the angelic boy known as Slave Replicant from Nebia’s royal guard.

“Let’s call it a day, senior. With that level of strength, you won’t even scratch my body.”

Slave Replicant spoke with an honest demeanor that perfectly matched his serene face. His smile, resembling closed eyelids, appeared gentle.

At his feet lay a massive phoenix, seemingly dead.

“Sun… Red.”

In contrast, Crona Delaware was gasping for breath, having exhausted all her mana.

With her contracted spirit, Sun Red, fallen, she had no strength left to fight.

“I don’t want to hurt you, senior.”

“….”

“Will you continue despite that?”

Crona flinched at those words. While it was an undeniable fact, Slave’s smile was also telling.

Despite saying that, it implied a counterthinking in his mind.

“Of course I will. It feels like something bad will happen if you win.”

Crona strained what little remaining mana she had and lifted her head.

She looked like she could collapse at any moment. Furthermore, due to unseen attacks, blood trickled from her arm.

Typically, the referee should have noticed and intervened in such a situation.

“….”

The referee merely stood silently by, as it was Jason, not Radian, who was present there.

An exchange of glances occurred between Jason and Slave, and understanding bestowed, Slave beamed and raised his hand.

“Then allow me to pay my respects to your perseverance.”

From the raised hand, a massive beam of light erupted. The beam, large enough to reach the underground ceiling, transformed into a bladed form.

The reason Sun Red had fallen and Crona had been incapacitated was precisely due to that attack.

“To use that in succession….”

“Everything was instigated by you, senior. Now then…”

Crack!—

The blade of light struck the ground. That immense strike was something even Crona, known for her incredible power as a second-year, could not contend against.

Much like the princess from the morning, this year’s newcomer was on an entirely different scale.

‘Am I done for here…?’

From the audience section, Jenny watched aghast, her expression filled with horror.

She looked ready to jump in and save but was visibly restrained by the referee.

‘You are indeed my friend.’

Unlike her usual bragging about being a rival, she internally regarded Crona as a friend, who was now swallowed by the beam of light.

A strike so formidable it seemed lethal, were it not for another student intervening, she would have faced a dire fate.

“I can’t watch with my eyes wide open!”

Suddenly, a student burst in, wielding a large mace.

It was Kent Egist, representing the second year. Despite his bloodied state, he had shielded Crona.

“Enough already, Slave Replicant. She was a hair’s breadth away from injury.”

“Injury? What nonsense. This is a practice match, and my power is under control….”

“Don’t play dumb! With this level, even if one side were critically injured, it wouldn’t be unexpected!”

Though Kent boldly retorted, his hands trembled, blood streaming down his head.

He hadn’t completely blocked it, leaving Crona in a similar state.

“Crona!”

Jenny, rushing back into the arena, along with Luska and Mary, called out as they sought to protect her.

“I can see it clearly!”

Kent shouted despite his shaking body from his injuries, his eyes wide open.

“I have seen how vile the true nature hidden behind your smiling mask is!”

Having seen countless filthy individuals, Kent could sense their aura.

The same went for the student Slave, who wore a perpetual grin.

Thus, he was able to intervene ahead of others.

“Hahaha!”

Slave suddenly laughed, his playful expression morphing into something sinister.

“Do you have any proof of that?”

Surviving as an Academy Scammer.

 

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