Chapter 313
A dangerous venomous monster hunt, as a two-person assignment!
While all the students of Class A wore blank expressions, Belya opened her mouth.
"Head Assistant."
"Ah, yes! Yes! Professor!"
The head teaching assistant, who had been standing at the back, came running forward in a hurry and stood at attention.
"Pick two people at random, and send them up via the teleportation magic circle."
"Ah, understood! What about you, Professor?"
"I'm going to go prepare the antidotes in advance."
Belya gave a meaningful smile.
"There will be some who arrive right on the verge of croaking from the poison."
A heavy tension filled the classroom. Belya looked over the students.
"You all keep this in mind too. Don't do anything reckless just to get a high score."
Leaving only those words behind, Belya exited the classroom.
The head assistant placed a hand over her chest, let out a small sigh of relief, then looked at the students and said,
"Alright, you heard the professor? We'll send you in pairs."
At that moment, Claudia raised her hand.
"A-Assistant! Can we at least choose our own partners—"
"You know that's not allowed, right? The professor said it's random."
At this school, Professor Keyzen's orders were absolute.
While the students murmured nervously about who they might get paired with, the assistants were busy writing all the names from the roll book onto slips of paper.
"But, instead…"
"?"
The head assistant placed two empty boxes on the lectern and smiled.
"One male student, one female student. We'll make mixed pairs! Sounds good, right?"
Belya's instructions had only been "two people at random". so how to divide them was up to the assistants' discretion.
The head assistant's suggestion sparked an immediate reaction.
The male students felt half burdened, half expectant, while the female students kept exclaiming, "Oh, come on!"—yet many were subtly fixing their hair or checking mirrors, as if they didn't really dislike the idea.
"…What a hassle."
Hector clicked his tongue with an annoyed expression, chin resting on his hand.
Soon the head assistant drew a male student, and another assistant drew the female partner to pair with him. Next round, they would reverse the order, drawing a female first and then a male.
The head assistant's intent was to lighten the tension before the performance evaluation, but this simple lottery quickly turned into an amusing event.
Before long, the entire class was deeply engrossed, reacting loudly and dramatically to each name called.
"Alright, next is the male student!"
The head assistant took a slip of paper from the box and unfolded it in the stillness. The sound of paper rustling filled the room before she spoke.
"Dick Hayword!"
When his name came up, Dick spread his arms wide to invite cheers, but the female students all made faces of disgust.
"A landmine."
"Gross."
"Dick's… fun, but… kind of…"
Hearing that, Dick scowled and glared at the girls.
"Hey! What's with you! I'm—"
"His partner will be Katherine!"
The girl presumed to be Katherine slammed her forehead down onto her desk with a loud thunk.
The male students slapped their thighs in laughter, while the female students patted Katherine's back in sympathy.
"Good luck defusing that bomb."
"Hang in there."
Maelyn added,
"Katherine, we won't forget your sacrifice."
Dick's expression boiled over as he glared at the group of girls.
"You'll all pay for this! I swear!"
Sitting behind him, Simon pulled him back by the arm as if to calm him down.
"Don't get too mad. They're just teasing you."
"Alright! Next student is… Simon Follentia!"
Suddenly, a dead silence swept through the classroom.
The girls who had been laughing at Dick instantly lost all mirth, their eyes fixed straight ahead. Maelyn clutched the hem of her clothes, Kamibarez pressed her hands together tightly. The sound of people swallowing could be heard here and there.
"You've got to be kidding! The reaction is way too different!!"
Dick felt like he had died a second time.
"Honestly, you've got to be in the same league to compare."
Cindy Vivace waved her hand up and down, finishing him off.
Meanwhile, Simon was thinking about who he'd like to go with. Total strangers were awkward, and tactically disadvantageous.
'Maelyn or Kami would be good. Or at least girls I know well enough.'
Then a male student spoke up.
"Assistant, isn't it the girls' turn to be picked first now?"
"Oh, right~"
The head assistant stuck out her tongue as if embarrassed at the mistake. She neatly folded Simon's slip, put it back in the box, and mixed it in. The girls' eyes turned sharp.
"Alright, the next female student is—"
She unfolded a slip and read,
"Kamibarez Ursula!"
Waaaah!
It was the loudest cheer yet.
She was the beloved youngest sister figure of Class A, with a cute appearance and a kind, gentle personality. Many male students wanted to be paired with her.
But Kamibarez herself seemed nervous, trembling like a penguin.
Her flushed eyes finally turned toward Simon.
'Please, let it be Simon…!'
"And her partner is… Simon Follentia!"
Kamibarez's mind went blank white.
Really?
For real?
"Die!"
"Those guys from Group 7 always hog Kami!"
"This is rigged, isn't it?!"
Blinded by jealousy, Dick and the other male students grabbed Simon by the collar and shook him.
"Alright, settle down! Next male student is… Hector Moore!"
Thankfully, attention shifted immediately to the next pick. In that moment, Kamibarez ran over.
"Simon~!"
Grabbing his sleeve, she beamed brightly.
"I'm so glad I get to go with you!"
Simon smiled back.
Although, the hostile stares stabbing him from behind made his scalp prickle.
* * *
Soon all the pairs were set, and the students of Class A headed for the hill where the teleportation circle awaited.
Maelyn ended up partnered with Toto, wearing an extremely displeased expression. Arms crossed, eyes glaring like she'd kill anyone who spoke to her.
'Poor Toto.'
Toto, a head shorter than Maelyn, was watching her warily with a frightened face.
Simon approached Maelyn to gently advise her.
"Don't be too harsh, work together."
Toto looked at Simon with grateful eyes, but Maelyn snorted with a sulky expression.
"Must be nice, going with Kami. Bet you've already got an A+ in the bag."
Still, Maelyn's sulking never lasted long.
True to her necromancer nature, she quickly accepted the situation and started asking Toto about his black magic, going over strategy.
"Alright, let's get ready right away!"
This performance evaluation was quite strict.
They even checked subspace to make sure there were no other antidotes hidden, and students had to change out of the Keyzen uniform into athletic wear or other clothes.
They also had to wear a small memorial crystal orb around their neck like a pendant, to record the combat scene. This was to ensure the evaluation was carried out without cheating.
If the button on the back of the memorial crystal orb was pressed, it would notify Keyzen of an emergency and request help. However, calling for school assistance meant you agreed to accept the lowest possible score.
"Alright, we'll begin the teleportation! Students called will come up quickly!"
* * *
The teleportation was over a shorter distance than expected.
'We're already here.'
When Simon opened his eyes, he saw a vast desert-like expanse of sand dunes, even more so than the Neutral Zone they'd visited before.
Turning around, behind them was an ordinary forest thick with trees.
In front, a desert, behind, a forest.
It looked like the very boundary of nature itself.
"So there's a place like this in the Dresden Kingdom."
"It used to be all forest, but after a dungeon appeared nearby, it turned into a desert!"
Kamibarez, who had come along with him, beamed as she waved the mission sheet in her hand.
"It says so right here!"
"…Haha."
Excited just to be outside alone with Simon, Kamibarez's wings fluttered nonstop. Seeing this, Simon let out a small chuckle of his own.
"Shall we get going?"
"Yes!"
They were outside Roke Island, but it was only a one-day performance evaluation. Time remaining, eight hours.
The two walked as they talked, Kamibarez continuing to read from the mission sheet.
"The venomous monster we have to hunt is the Desert Scorpion. It's rated Danger Level 5!"
"Level 5?"
A Level 5 threat was the same rank as the Abyssal Horror they had fought in the 3rd BMAT sea.
Of course, the Abyssal Horror's rating had dropped since it never left its underwater cave, whereas the Desert Scorpion's danger level was raised due to its venom.
They couldn't be considered equally strong, but just being in the same rank meant it was extremely dangerous.
"Looks like we've reached the scorpion's territory."
Simon pointed to a sign. They stood at the starting edge of the desert, where signs reading Beware of Scorpions! and Extremely Dangerous! were planted everywhere. Many bore a skull symbol.
As Simon walked, keeping watch, something bumped against his foot. It was an old human skull, half-buried in sand.
"Creepy."
Kamibarez hugged her shoulders. They took slow, careful steps forward.
"First, the scorpion has to show up before we can make the antidote or anything else."
Just as Simon said that, he stopped abruptly.
The once-flat sand ahead was slowly rising upward.
'It's here!'
Simon quickly scooped Kamibarez into his arms and dove aside. A massive tail shot out of the sand and slammed into the ground.
THUUUUD!
Sand erupted like a fountain, its destructive power obvious at a glance.
Setting Kamibarez down, Simon turned to see that the tail had already vanished without a trace. In the sand, a glint of green liquid was visible.
"Poison. Be careful, Kami!"
"Yes!"
As expected of a Level 5 monster, it was far faster than he'd imagined.
The two scanned their surroundings warily, when again, sand began to bulge upward from one side.
Spotting it first, Kamibarez shouted,
"Simon! To your right!"
Simon felt his left foot stuck to the ground, and his eyes sharpened.
'Open Gate!'
Shhhhrk!
Two blades erupted upward just as the scorpion's tail came down.
BOOM!
Two tentacle-like blades and the single tail met in the center with a tremendous crash.
A hit-and-run. The Desert Scorpion, its attack blocked, tried to dive back into the sand.
Bubbling!
Just then, small pools of blood welled up around it, forming a ring. Eyes closed in concentration, Kamibarez gracefully swept her arms.
Slash!
Slash!
From the pools shot lines of blood, latching onto the scorpion's body. It strained, trying to burrow back underground, the blood threads pulled taut.
"Ugh!"
Kamibarez wavered with a pained groan.
"I'll help you, Kami!"
From Simon's ten fingers streamed emerald mist, flying like ropes to coil around the scorpion.
"One, two—!"
Bending their knees, Simon and Kamibarez heaved together. Bound tightly in red and green cords, the scorpion staggered, lost balance, and slammed to the ground.
BOOM!
It thrashed violently, razor-sharp forelegs slicing, severing several Cloud and Blood Thread strands.
"Ghh!"
With Cloud linked to his nerves, Simon felt searing pain.
"Simon!!"
Slash!
The scorpion's foreleg grazed Simon's shoulder. He retreated just in time, clutching it.
'Damn, poison…!'
Enraged, the Desert Scorpion lunged straight at him.
THUD!
Simon and the scorpion collided head-on, a contest of strength. His legs scraped long tracks into the sand as he was pushed back.
'Internal Darkness Divergence!'
Black sweat dripped from Simon's body. With his enhanced physique, he barely held the scorpion in place.
Frustrated, the scorpion raised its massive tail to strike him down—
'Tightening!'
Kamibarez had cleverly wound all her Blood Threads around the tail alone, halting its movement.
"Nice, Kami!"
Holding the scorpion in place, Simon opened his subspace. Skeletons poured out, swarming onto the immobilized creature, driving spears into the gaps of its carapace and slashing to open wounds.
The scorpion writhed in agony.
"Ready?"
"Yes! I finished it beforehand!"
Simon's gaze hardened.
'Open Gate! Maximum number!'
THUUUUUUD!
Six Overlord blades erupted from the ground, launching the scorpion's body into the air. Simon staggered back and shouted,
"Now!"
Eyes bloodshot, Kamibarez raised both arms overhead.
The crown jewel of haematology magic—
Shaaah!
From the wounds carved by the skeletons, torrents of blood burst forth.
A crimson rain fell from the sky.