Chapter 199: Please Maintain Some Decency, Sesshouin-sensei!
["Aha, Kiara's online again."]
["Uwaa, I've never seen a nun who looks both pure and lewd at the same time like this woman."]
["Suddenly… my whole body feels hot."]
["Namo Amitabha Buddha, my lilbro, please control yourself, don't hard!"]
["Are all Buddhist nuns this hot? If so, I'll register to become a monk at the temple right away!"]
["Ascetic monk life… sounds like a new form of masochistic self-abuse. I'll register too!"]
["Yo Darkness-kun, long time no see, haven't seen you comment lately."]
["Hehe, just been a bit busy, I found Yasashi-chan's Facebook account, currently in the process of getting to know her, hehehe."]
["OHHHHH, tell me more."]
[Shut up! You Baka!!!]
...
Seeing the black hounds crawling out from the crack slowly approaching—
Ethan immediately grabbed a book from the floor and threw it at them!
"Grrrroooaaarrr——————!!!"
Seeing a moving object, the black hounds instantly pounced toward it by instinct!
Ethan quickly grabbed Sesshouin Kiara's hand — who was frozen in panic — and pulled her along in a mad dash down the stairs!
"Eh?! Why are monsters like this appearing inside the school grounds?!"
Sesshouin Kiara's face was full of panic.
She really didn't look like she was faking it.
But right now Ethan didn't have time to distinguish real from fake — he just charged down the stairs, three steps in two!
"P-please wait, Ethan-kun~~~"
Being yanked by the arm, Sesshouin Kiara stumbled after him unsteadily down the stairs.
Several times, they were almost struck by the black hounds charging after them.
Suddenly, one black hound lunged straight toward them!
Ethan immediately leaned aside to dodge, and the hound fell right through the stair gap down to the first floor!
A sharp scream from a student rang out from below.
In this situation, the only choice was to run to Mash's classroom on the second floor!
Just as Ethan was about to leap over the last two steps—
A weight suddenly slammed into him from behind?!
"Ahhh——————!!!"
Sesshouin Kiara, panicked, slipped and fell, landing directly on top of Ethan?!
"SLAM!!!"
Ethan was once again crushed underneath.
"Sorry… I fell again… a-are you okay?!"
Sesshouin Kiara leaned down worriedly to check on Ethan.
That fall nearly knocked Ethan out — her soft body pressed close, sharp pain shooting up his back, and the sense of danger combined to overload his brain.
Amid that chaotic mess of three clashing sensations, Ethan's eyes caught sight of a black hound above, diving down like a bullet.
His body instantly flooded with adrenaline.
Ethan gritted his teeth, grabbed Sesshouin Kiara, and rolled to the right, narrowly dodging the pounce.
"How did things end up like this..."
With their positions now swapped, Sesshouin Kiara blushed deeply and said:
"…Such rough handling… but… aaah… and in such a public place… i-it's really embarrassing..."
At this moment, all of Ethan's attention was locked on the black hound nearby.
After missing its strike, the hound crashed into the hallway railing and let out a furious growl!
"Th-there's a monster!!"
"Run! A monster's appeared!!"
"What the hell is that thing?! Run!!!"
The nearby students who saw the scene instantly fell into chaos.
The black hounds began instinctively attacking the fleeing students. Ethan took the opportunity to stand up and yank Sesshouin Kiara up, intending to keep running toward the second-year classrooms.
"Ah… I think I twisted my ankle..."
Sesshouin Kiara was half-kneeling on the floor, one white high heel lying off to the side.
Wait a second, this nun came to school in high heels?!
"Grrraaooo——————————!!!"
Two black hounds from the upper floor caught the scent and immediately locked onto the two of them in the crowd, mouths wide open, charging straight ahead!!!
"Damn it!!!"
Ethan was about to repeat the old move — but this time, it looked like he wouldn't make it in time.
"BOONG————————!!!"
Suddenly, a shield appeared right in front of Ethan, blasting both black hounds away!
"Senpai, are you alright?"
Mash, wearing her JK uniform, had arrived just in time.
"I heard loud noises outside, so I rushed over."
"The enemies aren't just those two, be careful."
"As long as I'm here, Senpai can rest assured… but..."
Mash's gaze suddenly turned sharp.
"Who is this woman? No matter how I look at it, she seems very close to Senpai, clinging to you like that."
"There's nothing close about it…"
Sesshouin Kiara showed a shy expression.
"…It's not like we're that close… Ethan-kun and I… just happened to fall on each other twice."
"Wait a second, don't say it in such a misleading way!!!"
Why does kouhai-chan's gaze feel colder than ice right now!!!
"Grrrroooaaarrr————————!!!"
Another black hound charged in.
"BOONG————————!!!"
Mash immediately swung her shield hard at the black hound flying toward them.
The dog was struck mid-air and flung straight through the window, nearly turning into a shooting star across the sky?!
"Senpai, in any case, please explain things clearly after we finish this battle!"
Mash glared with a pressuring look.
"Got it…"
He felt that if he didn't explain things properly, the consequences would definitely be grim.
"Auuuuu————————!!!"
Seeing its comrade get blown away, one black hound howled loudly, echoing across the sky.
The hounds that were attacking other students also began to regroup, gathering back together — there were at least several dozen of them!
"Grrrrrrrrr————————!!!"
The black hounds bared their sharp fangs in unison, beginning to split up and surround their prey.
"GRAAAAH————————!!!"
As one hound lunged forward, all the others launched their attack together!!!
"Haaaah!!!"
Mash used her shield to knock back several hounds from the front, but behind her, others were already closing in on Ethan!
"Whooshhh————————!!!"
Suddenly, several daggers flew in, striking the black hounds directly in the head?!
Ethan quickly turned toward the direction the daggers came from.
"Matou Shinji" was standing at the top of the stairs.
It was Berserker Jack?!
He threw another dagger, piercing a black hound mid-air, then pressed his finger to his lips and shook his head slightly at Ethan before disappearing immediately.
…Was he telling Ethan not to expose his identity?
"SLAM!!!"
Mash knocked down another hound closing in, then immediately turned back to check on Ethan.
"Senpai!"
She raised her shield and struck down the last black hound near Ethan and Sesshouin Kiara.
"Hmm? Are there any more left?"
Sensing that the number of hounds didn't feel quite right, Mash immediately began scanning the area.
"Mash, thank you."
Ethan interrupted Mash's action.
"Mash-san… right?"
Sesshouin Kiara struggled to stand up, then bowed to thank Mash.
"Thank you very much. If it weren't for you, I might've been eaten by those things."
Faced with sincere gratitude from a woman dressed like a Buddhist nun, Mash politely responded.
"No, I just happened to act in the moment…"
"Ding dong——————!"
Suddenly, the school's internal broadcast system rang out from overhead.
"There is an unusual intrusion on campus. All students, please return to your classrooms for shelter. All teachers, please return to the staff room immediately. Repeating once again——"
"Ara, looks like I'll have to go back first."
Sesshōin Kiara bowed to Ethan and Mash.
"Thank you both for saving my life. I will properly thank you later. For now, please excuse me."
Mash watched Kiara's back as she walked away, her expression filled with doubt.
"Who is that woman wearing the nun outfit? Could she be a teacher at this school?"
"She is Fujimura Taiga."
Ethan replied while still looking at her receding figure.
The scent of incense still lingered in the air.
"She's Fujimura Taiga?! The teacher you mentioned?!"
She's clearly a nun!
"Yeah, actually I ran into her when I went upstairs to check the situation, and that's when those beasts showed up."
"So that's how it was… Looks like I wrongly blamed you earlier, Senpai."
Mash immediately apologized to Ethan, and her expression seemed to relax somewhat.
"But still, so there really are teachers like that in this school."
Mash also seemed to start accepting the setup of having a teacher be a nun.
"Alright, let's head back to class too."
Ethan glanced around at the spots where the black hounds were gradually fading away, then turned and walked toward the classroom.
"Oh right, Senpai, I asked around earlier. Seems like no one knows anything about an infirmary existing."
"So it really is like that..."
Ethan wasn't surprised at all by the information Mash had gathered.
It seemed clear that all data regarding the infirmary had been erased — though whether BB was behind it or not remained uncertain.
"But I did hear a piece of information that might be useful."
Mash quickly followed behind Ethan.
"If we want to enter what they call the 'labyrinth' in this academy, we need to gather three keys to prove ourselves before we can get in."
"Oh?"
Looks like Mash's efforts weren't in vain — this piece of information sounded genuinely important.
After all, their goal in infiltrating this place was to enter that very 'labyrinth.'
"Any idea how to get those keys?"
"No… actually, about that I'm still…"
Mash was just about to explain that she was still in the process of investigating when a voice suddenly interrupted.
"Hmph, sounds like you two are troubled about something."
A cocky-looking figure suddenly appeared in the hallway ahead.
"Don't tell me you guys are also planning to conquer that 'labyrinth'?"
"From the way you're talking, you sound pretty well-informed."
Ethan looked straight at the blue-haired teenager in front of him — a guy so arrogant he didn't see anyone else in his eyes.
Matou Shinji.
"Of course. Only a genius like this Young Master can obtain such high-level intel. Transfer students like you shouldn't dream too big."
Matou Shinji puffed out his chest and stood tall, blocking Ethan's path.
But Ethan simply led Mash past him without a second glance.
"Hey! Are you ignoring me!!!"
Matou Shinji quickly ran after them.
"Now's the time you're supposed to ask me what's going on, right?!"
"..."
Ethan tilted his head slightly, glancing at the loud Matou Shinji beside him.
Although he looked like a sixteen-year-old high school student…
The truth was he was basically just an eight-year-old kid — bratty and ridiculously quick to sulk.
"…Alright then."
Ethan suddenly stopped walking, then turned and looked straight at Matou Shinji.
"Say everything you know."
"Hmph hmph, so you finally recognize the greatness of this Young Master, huh?"
Matou Shinji folded his arms across his chest.
"You two want to get into that labyrinth, right? But sorry, that labyrinth doesn't open for people like you. Because you don't have what's called 'qualification'."
"'Qualification'? What's that?"
Faced with Ethan's somewhat serious question, Matou Shinji became even more smug.
"See? You don't even know how to obtain 'qualification'. Fine then, since we're classmates, I'll tell you in advance."
Matou Shinji, arms still folded, began to lecture:
"If you want to enter the 'labyrinth', you must rank in the top 5 during midterm or final exams — only then will the teachers grant you the 'qualification' to enter the 'labyrinth'."
So it's that kind of selection system, huh.
Ethan lowered his head in thought.
"Oh? Judging from that look on your face, you definitely can't make it, right?"
As if he just turned the tide in a losing battle, Matou Shinji's face lifted even higher with pride.
"And not only do you need qualification, you also need two additional keys to be allowed to enter the 'labyrinth'. Everyone who obtains qualification will be given one key. To enter, you must collect all three — do you understand what that means?"
In other words, you have to snatch two keys from other people in order to enter the "labyrinth".
As expected of a Mooncell-generated area — it always favors making humans compete and fight each other.
"But if that's the case, you must also be holding one of the keys, right?"
"Hmph hmph, so you finally figured it out!"
Matou Shinji was clearly waiting for Ethan to ask that. The arrogant smile on his face made one instinctively want to take three steps back.
"That's right. Now do you see the greatness of this Young Master?"
"Then lend it to me for a bit."
Ethan held out his hand.
"Are you stupid? Asking to borrow something like this."
Matou Shinji immediately refused.
But when he saw Ethan's serious gaze, he stepped back a few paces, then flashed a sly grin again.
"You're not thinking of using violence to snatch my key, are you?"
Matou Shinji raised his right hand in front of Ethan — a crimson red Command Seal was visible.
"Senpai, he has a Command Seal too?!"
Mash exclaimed in surprise.
"See this? As long as I have this, I can command a Familiar. With your strength, there's no way you can defeat me. Scared yet? Hahahaha!!!"
Matou Shinji laughed arrogantly, his face full of pride.
"By the way, everyone with 'qualification' will also have this mark. This is the symbol of power!!!"
"Oh, you mean this thing."
Ethan casually rolled up the sleeve of his school uniform and revealed the back of his hand.
Three glowing red Command Seals stood out clearly in view.
Ethan gave a light smile.
"What a coincidence, I have this too."