Episode 129. Joint Training (3)
‘That was a hellish day.’
Marclay thought as he walked toward the stadium.
After the christening party at the Chainsilver mansion, the image of the Layert family began to hit rock bottom.
The location is the official party of the Chainsilver family, known as the most noble family in the empire.
Since it was a gathering of nobles and royal family members, it was natural for a few words of advice from Sukdeok to spread far and wide.
Since he caused the accident in such a public place, it is considered unworthy of him to show his face.
Eventually, with the constant barrage of bad words, all groups that had been cooperating with the family cut ties.
Moreover, he was expelled from the noble committee organized by the imperial family.
Currently, the only things that are keeping the Lairt lineage alive are the remaining assets of the family and some of the landowners.
However, these too will soon disappear, because the power of the family was not created directly by the Layerts themselves.
‘If only there wasn’t a crawler…!’
It’s never their fault. That’s all that’s left for them to do as a last resort.
It was at that moment when the last remaining hope was about to disappear.
‘But now my family’s entire fortune depends on my performance.’
The last chance given to Layert. It was a plan by the Knight Commander, Sir Jason, which could be called a last resort.
Jason’s tongue-twisting promise that he would put him back on the Noble Council if he could achieve that. The Layert family put their child, Markray, on the line to make that happen.
‘I thought I would die from the aftereffects… but I endured it. Now there is no one left in front of me!’
A magical treatment arranged by Sir Jason. They readily agreed to it, even though they were told that there would be side effects in return.
Even though the pain was nerve-wracking, Marclay endured it and gained insane strength.
‘With this power, I don’t think I could defeat that kid, or even the entire school, even if they attacked me!
Thanks to that, getting into class A during the class placement test was a piece of cake.
This is because the modified version of himself was on par with the professors in terms of magical power.
Moreover, for some reason, being attached to Jason naturally led to me joining Saint Nebia’s inner circle.
Thanks to this, I can now walk around confidently even though I am a layered person with dirty colored glasses on.
‘If I win this duel… that guy will be next! I will definitely get revenge and get revenge!’
Unlike back then, I feel stronger now.
Everything you see looks like a tin can that gets crushed underfoot.
Once we get that white-haired can out of the way, it’s time for that damn thing to get going next.
“start!”
He immediately puts his magic power into his hands at the professor’s declaration as the judge.
This feeling of something black crawling inside your body is not a curse, but a blessing.
Yes, he is absolutely not lying.
“I don’t know who you are, but you’re really unlucky.”
“….”
“Don’t blame me.”
The white-haired cadet stares at him silently. Aside from the wooden sword in his hand, he doesn’t seem to be in any combat stance.
‘Why aren’t you preparing anything?’
He doesn’t even feel the aura of magic. On the other hand, he is already prepared to use magic.
The difference between a gun that is diligently loaded and a gun that is lazily unloaded.
Maybe he’s just looking down on his senior by one year. That ignorance is what leads to his defeat.
“If you want to blame someone, blame Radon Crowler, that bastard!”
It fires several rounds of black bullets generated from its hands, the mid-level magic ‘Black Ball’.
Now, it was a match, so I had to adjust my strength, but when I flew it in practice for a real match, it boasted a destructive power that could even crush a giant diamond.
However, the opponent still stood there. If he becomes a beehive like this, it is his own responsibility.
“omg…!”
Marclay, who had been so proud, suddenly took a deep breath.
If you get hit by the Black Ball, which has strong destructive power, you’re finished. However, it’s only effective if you can hit it, and it’s meaningless if the opponent avoids it all.
Just like right now.
“Die!”
Markray gathered his magical power to the max and multiplied the black balls. The attacks he fired with all his might were like black rain.
An influx of attacks that could not be blocked even with an aura came pouring in, but this time too, the opponent naturally dodged.
“This can’t be happening!”
It’s so fast that I can’t see any movement. Why? The modified body should be able to detect even fast beings.
“Who should I blame?”
“…!!”
At that moment, I got goosebumps when I heard a voice behind me. Not only did I avoid them all, but before I knew it, they were standing behind me.
“When did you…!”
“….”
This is no time to sit around blankly. Hurry up and deploy your magic curtain to minimize the damage…
puck!-
Suddenly, I lost consciousness. My vision went black as I thought I had been hit with a blunt impact.
“This is the way you’ve been speaking informally to your senior since earlier.”
Lyman Begilius, who had defeated MacRae so pointlessly, looked on with indifferent eyes.
And the referee’s roar rang out, announcing his victory.
* * * * *
The morning part of the freshman joint training is over. Since there are so many cadets, it is divided into morning and afternoon sessions.
After we finished, we were able to enjoy some leisurely time in the square.
The defeat of the protagonists was already expected.
Except for the monster protagonist, Lyman, it was also a device that suggested that something big would happen soon.
But there was one character who was not defeated.
“I drew.”
Mary comes up to me with a blank expression on her face. It’s quite unusual for someone who’s usually so excited.
“Training is over, so why don’t you relax now?”
“Yeah, compared to us who lost, Mary is the best.”
Jenny and Ruska spoke to Mary, who was sitting listlessly at the square table.
Even though it is they who really need to be taught.
“Right, Radon?”
Jenny said, grabbing my shoulder as she sat next to me. I knew that Mary wasn’t doing this simply because of the results of a win or loss.
“Come to think of it, weren’t the opponents you fought a bit strange?”
“huh?”
“Everyone said that they were all directly under the jurisdiction of Saint Nevia.”
The new recruits they fought during training are called the Saintess’s Guard.
The saintess refers to none other than Nevia, and her personal guard is known within the school to be comprised of boys and girls with transcendent potential.
“How come all your sparring partners are chosen from those guys?”
“Of course, it’s natural for Class C to fight with Class C, and Class A to fight with Class A.”
The sparring opponents were carefully arranged to ensure balance. Of course, it wasn’t my luck that my opponents were either Miro or the Princess.
In contrast, their opponents were placed in a suitable manner.
“But I think it was the same when I fought. When I crossed swords with that guy, I lost all my will to fight.”
Ruska then told a story about a fight with a freshman.
The name is Hellk Manzello. The more they dealt with him, the more Ruska began to feel ominous.
“And Mary, you too, just like me, suddenly lose your strength after a good fight.”
“…uh!”
When Ruska points it out properly, Mary looks up again and looks at Ruska. As if sensing something in those words, Mary stares intently.
Ruska also looked at her seriously as if something had clicked.
Okay!-
Mary suddenly grabbed the air next to Ruska’s face. It was a move that could have been surprising, but in reality, it was nothing special.
“I finally caught it! The bee!”
“Ha… Well then, that’s right.”
Ruska was disillusioned by the fact that the fight was just over a bug.
As soon as he swallowed the bee that was in his hand, Ruska and I became one with a frown on our faces.
“Hmm! Now I finally have the strength to speak!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Actually, I was similar. I became dull while fighting with that guy.”
The name of the freshman Mary fought with was Lavender Branch.
She was a girl with dark pink hair and was one of the bodyguards along with Lenka Uslan and Manzello.
“What can I say… it felt like I was inhaling pesticide.”
“Pesticide? What the heck is that?”
Ruska was dumbfounded when she heard this. Even though she knew that it was Mary’s weakness, she still couldn’t get used to it.
“But I wasn’t sure. I didn’t actually inhale that gas.”
“They really are strange guys.”
Ruska and Mary had their doubts, but Jenny didn’t really feel that way.
“But wouldn’t it be useless to doubt them? After all, it’s true that their power was far superior to ours.”
It was safe to say that the two other than Mary were inferior in strength. If, as rumored, their potential was higher than theirs, then it could be explained somewhat.
“Don’t have any weird thoughts. Oh, the afternoon match will start soon!”
As break time was about to end, Jenny suddenly stood up. This was because her friend Crona had a match scheduled for the afternoon.
“You like it that much?”
“It’s Crona’s turn to come out, of course. If I hadn’t been watching from the start, he’d be really upset.”
Besides, Crona is running for student council president. We need to cheer her on so she doesn’t show up in a humiliating way.
“Do you want to see Radon together?”
“I’ll just stay here. You guys are secondary, and I think he’ll hate me.”
“Hmm… Okay. See you later then!”
All of them except me ran back to the underground gym, but I didn’t follow them.
“Should we go check on Jason’s condition?”
It’s safer not to go to the stadium right now.
The new student who will fight against Crona is also one of the royal guards, and the last member is a slave replicant. He is a guy who always has an angelic smile.
From the moment the match begins, he captivates the cadets with his face. As if that wasn’t enough, he shows off his presence by making Crona look tattered.
The cadets, fascinated by his immense appearance and strength, cheer him on.
Naturally, the main characters are the only ones who object to this, but their opinions are ignored as losers.
In addition, he is booed for not being able to maintain his pride as a senior.
“If I had been in the underground gym, I might have been put in there too.”
The main characters, except for Lyman, are labeled as losers. It doesn’t do any good for the freshmen to become known like that.
‘Of course… that would only be possible if Jason were the referee.’
So there was a need to check Jason’s condition.
dripping-
The door I knocked on was the academy’s infirmary. The moment I opened the door, Professor Stella, the old lady, greeted me with a smile.
“It’s Radon. What’s wrong?”
“I came to check on Instructor Jason. Are you inside?”
I said, carefully unfolding the curtain covering the bed. But there was not a single patient lying down.
“If it was him, he would have already gone to the underground gym. He would have probably returned as a referee.”
Eventually, he will be involved in the match again. As expected, the recovery speed of a strong person is truly amazing.
‘It looks like it will inevitably flow just like the original story.’
Since it was Jason who created that bodyguard, it’s obvious whose side he’ll take during the match.
* * * * *
A huge, spiderweb-like crack appeared on the stadium floor.
The first damage to the stadium since the Princess’s match.
The one who caused this was an angel-like boy called Saint Nevia’s Guard.
“Please stop now, Senior. You can’t even inflict a single wound on me with that much strength.”
A slave replicant speaking with an honest attitude that fits his face. His smile, which seemed to be half-opened, seemed kind.
At his feet lay a huge phoenix, seemingly dead.
“Sun… red.”
As Slave’s opponent, Krona Delaware was gasping for breath, having exhausted all her magical power.
Since even the contract spirit, Sunred, had fallen, there was no strength left to fight.
“I don’t want to hurt you, senior.”
“….”
“Would you like to continue anyway?”
Crona flinched at the sound. There were some undeniable facts, but… there was also a smile on Slave’s lips.
It meant that even though he said that, he was thinking the opposite inside.
“Of course we should continue. I have a feeling that if you win, something bad will happen.”
Crona raised his head, squeezing out what little magic he had left.
He looked like he might collapse at any moment. What’s more, his arm was bleeding due to an invisible attack.
This is a situation where the referee usually has to notice the situation and intervene.
“….”
The referee just stood there quietly, because it was Jason, not Radian, who was standing there.
Jason and Slave exchanged glances, and Slave, understanding the meaning, smiled and raised his hand.
“Then I will show my respect for your persistence, senior.”
A huge pillar of light rises from the raised hand. The light, large enough to reach the ceiling, transforms into the shape of a blade.
The reason Sunred fell and Crona was incapacitated was because of that attack.
“Using that in succession….”
“It’s all your fault, senior. So…”
Kwakwakwang!-
The sword of light struck the ground. Even Crona, known as the best firepower of the second year students, could not handle the massive slash.
The princess in the morning was different from this year’s freshmen.
‘Is this it…?’
Jenny in the stands looks at this side with a shocked expression.
He has a face that looks like he’ll jump in to save you at any moment, but he can’t move because of the referee.
‘You are my friend after all.’
Unlike when he always bragged about being his rival, Crona, who secretly considered him a friend, was swallowed up by the light’s calamity.
A horrifying attack that made the target think he was going to die. If no cadet had stopped him, he would have been at a crossroads of life and death.
“I can’t stand looking at it with my eyes open!”
The cadet who suddenly intervened and blocked the blow was holding a large mace.
Kent Easyst, the current second-year representative. He protected Crona even at the risk of getting covered in blood.
“Take it easy, Slave Replicant. She almost got hurt just now.”
“You’re going to get hurt. It’s a practice match, so I’m in good shape, so you’re talking nonsense….”
“Don’t be so ignorant! This much is enough, but if you were to use such a great technique, it wouldn’t have been strange if one side of your body became crippled!”
Kent fired boldly, but his hands were shaking and blood was pouring from his head.
Since it couldn’t be completely blocked, even Crona, who was the target, ended up looking the same.
“krona!”
Jenny, Ruska, and Mary rush to the stadium late to protect her.
“I know it when I see it!”
Kent opened his eyes wide and shouted, even though his body was shaking from the wound.
“How ugly is your true self hidden behind your smiling mask!”
Kent had seen countless people with dirty hearts, so he could sense their unique aura.
The same goes for the Slaven cadet who walks around with that smiling expression.
So I was able to get in on this before anyone else.
“Hahahaha!”
The slave suddenly smiled and raised his bright eyes.
At that moment, his expression changed to that of a fox, and he gave off a strong aura.
“Is there any confirmation of that?”
Surviving as an Academy Fraudster
