episode_0198

Knife Franz Academy regular exams; the practical exams consist of two parts.

One is an individual tournament, and the other is a team-based event where points are awarded.

The team event is a team game where students enter a mock dungeon created by the academy instructors and clear several conditions.

Finding hidden magical tools, defeating monsters swarming in various locations, and overcoming complex trap mechanisms to escape the area quickly are all ways to earn points.

Points can be obtained from various sources, and their types are diverse. Therefore, having every student in the class utilize their abilities effectively is the key to achieving a high score.

Especially today, it’s a practical training exercise dealing with monsters in a rather unfamiliar natural environment.

The training location is an open plain on the outskirts of the Bewitching Forest. The 1-A students gathered their personal equipment, such as staffs and wands, and moved outside the academy.

The leaders are five instructors from the Department of Magic.

It might seem like a small number of instructors, but each is a promising magician who could potentially reach the realm of a Grand Mage.

They’re not the type to be endangered by simply being surrounded by low-level monsters at the dungeon entrance.

Furthermore, the students are no children, nor are they ordinary people unfamiliar with magic.

They have all received private lessons from Nari whenever possible and diligently participated in the instructors’ classes, honing their skills. They can be considered at least Rare-rank adventurers in skill level.

Yuri, an Epic-rank adventurer, looked down at her metal wand inlaid with translucent magic stones.

Clink-

The magic stones contain the pure white light that appears when Nari uses magic.

Just holding it makes her feel a familiar sensation spreading throughout her body. When she uses magic, it feels like she’s drawing mana together with Nari.

She’d received the wand as a gift recently and carried it everywhere like her shadow.

She always felt like she received so much from Nari, and therefore served Nari wholeheartedly. Yet, she received another gift.

She heard that the wand, inlaid with special magic stones, was worth dozens of gold coins—very valuable. Receiving such an expensive gift made her feel overwhelmed; at first, she considered refusing it.

However, she changed her mind.

‘If I were to give a gift… and my sister refused it, I think I’d be a little sad.’

Understanding Nari’s feelings well, Yuri decided to gratefully accept the gift. And with that, she serves Nari every day with overflowing love.

Swoosh-

Suddenly, a black mist flowed out from her black onyx necklace and enveloped the pure white magic stones. Yuri gripped the wand tightly.

“No, Nix. This is mine, so don’t touch it.”

“Mmm… But in return, when we get home, I want to borrow some of your collection. Heheheh-”

“That’s fine. In fact, that’s why I made it; feel free to use it.”

After making some kind of deal, the black mist was sucked back into the black onyx of the pendant.

Another student, witnessing this from behind, trembled, thinking Yuri might be possessed, and quickly put distance between them.

. . .

Thud-

“We have arrived. This is the [Tarafp Plain], the kingdom’s most famous beginner dungeon.”

About an hour’s walk northeast from the academy – or about 20 minutes if you use magic to enhance your physical abilities. The Tarafp Plain was one of the closest dungeons to the East Gate.

The increasingly dense mana makes it hard to breathe as you approach, like gradually getting drenched in a light rain. Occasionally, monsters like wild boars escape from here, often causing damage to the farmland outside the walls.

That’s why one of the most frequent requests during the farming season is hunting monsters here.

Rustle- Whisper-

Tall grass, reaching up to the knees, tickled their legs. It was an environment where venomous creatures, such as snakes, from Tarun Mountain or the Bewitching Forest, could easily hide.

“Whew… Finally, we’re going to catch monsters.”

“How about you try to calm those shaking hands…?”

The students each held their wands and staffs, ready for battle. Some magic stones already shimmered, as if ready to launch magical projectiles.

“There’s no need to be so tense yet. The instructors will let you know when the monsters appear. Let’s advance slowly according to their instructions.”

They were divided into five groups, each led by an instructor.

Yuri greeted her teammates cheerfully and looked around. She soon realized that Eve wasn’t there.

She approached the instructor in charge of her group.

“Excuse me… I don’t see cadet Eve Istar. What happened?”

“Ah, she said she wasn’t feeling well and would be resting. It’s not severe enough to affect her daily life, so don’t worry.”

Yuri quietly swallowed. The cold-blooded Eve failed in her condition management; it was a little unbelievable.

She was worried about Eve personally, but honestly, she trusted Eve even more than Nix. Knowing that Eve was a strong warrior on par with Nari, she thought Eve was the best person to lead 1-A in her absence.

The black onyx of her necklace trembled slightly.

“…Understood. I trust you too.”

As Yuri gently stroked the black onyx, the trembling stopped, and the mana subsided.

Each group, maintaining a certain distance according to the instructor’s signal, spread out across the Tarafp Plain.

. . .

“Cleansing Stream—!!”

As Yuri chanted, the wand in her hand glowed blue, shooting out a thick jet of water.

Whoooooosh—

The three wild boars charging towards her were momentarily stunned by the intense water pressure.

Then, raising her wand high, she visualized the image of the boars freezing over, infusing that into her mana.

“Freeze-Dry—!!”

A flash of light struck the wet wild boars.

Cizzle-sizzle-

They froze solid with their eyes wide open.

Whoosh-

She rushed forward through the bushes.

Yuri kicked the boars, knocking them over, and stepping on them, she shouted again.

“Water Jet Blade—!!”

Once more, a stream of water shot from the wand. This time, it was incredibly thin and intense, a sharp blade of water pressure that cut through nearby blades of grass with just a touch.

Thwack- Plunge-!

She thrust the water blade into the necks of the boars, ensuring their deaths.

Although the freeze-drying magic [Freeze-Dry] alone, which freezes the target and removes moisture, would inflict fatal damage, Yuri, having some experience adventuring, didn’t neglect confirmation of the kill.

“Whew…”

Yuri wiped the sweat from her forehead and caught her breath after cleanly taking down the three wild boar monsters.

The instructor and cadets behind her gaped.

“Wow— How did you do that, Miss Yurias?!”

“Amazing…!! It was like watching a veteran adventurer!!”

“Whew… There’s nothing left for me to teach Miss Yurias.”

Returning to her team, Yuri tucked her wand into her belt and bowed to the instructor.

“It’s not quite that. Compared to the instructor, my absolute skill level is still far behind. And… I’m still unskilled in coordinating with my teammates. I would appreciate any pointers.”

With her extraordinary abilities, her humble attitude towards learning was admirable; no instructor could possibly give her a disapproving look.

“Alright then, let’s adjust the training slightly. Miss Yurias, you will be the team leader; the other cadets will cooperate according to your signals.”

The cadets nodded, each gripping their wands and staffs tightly.

The instructors also smiled warmly at their students’ serious attitude towards training.

The instructor raised their hand and signaled to the instructor of another group, then slowly moved forward.

“We will move to the next location.”

Yuri also looked around at the other groups.

The group composition wasn’t random. Her group consisted mostly of cadets with a mid-range magic combat style, and their instructor also specialized in mid-range magic.

On the other hand, the group to their immediate left had no staffs or wands; instead, they carried magic stone accessories. They emphasized quick movements and close-range magic combat. Their instructor’s main weapon was also a magic gauntlet inlaid with magic stones.

The group to the right were all armed with large staffs. They were long-range magic combat casters who used powerful area-of-effect magic to attack distant enemies.

Based on this group composition, today’s training seemed to focus on utilizing individual strengths.

Yuri was a little surprised.

“Even without my sister… everyone seems to be doing well. I’m proud of you all.”

“Hey, what’s this? Are you acting like a big sister because you’re a little strong? You little punk—”

A male cadet from her group ruffled Yuri’s hair playfully. But Yuri quickly dodged his hand, using the footwork she had learned from her sister.

“Don’t carelessly touch me. Only my sister can touch me.”

“Tch… Fast.”

“Don’t relax too much. Don’t waste the mana you’ve painstakingly gathered.”

“…Got it.”

The four cadets bickered, yet followed their instructor toward the center of the plain.

Thump-

The instructor suddenly raised their hand, stopping their group’s step.

“There’s a magical presence of monsters ahead.”

Yuri followed the instructor’s gaze into the thick bushes. Although the forms weren’t clearly visible, she felt the creepy feeling she’d experienced during the Artemis ruins exploration and Academy incident.

Mages.

The ominous aura of evil spirits and souls. Nari had taught her these were the most dangerous things to watch out for during adventures.

Her body tense, she focused all her attention on the mage that seeped from the bushes, when suddenly—

Thump-

A cadet behind her placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Excuse me, Miss Yurias…?”

“What is it? We need to focus on the—”

That was the moment.

“Those people behind… do you happen to know them…?”

“…?!”

Yuri realized that she could feel the mage’s presence from behind and quickly turned around.

She spotted several men clad in black cloaks emerging slowly from the tall grass of the plain.

“…Unexpected guests have arrived.”

Yuri immediately drew her wand and placed her hand on her black onyx necklace.

The instructor also spotted the surrounding thugs and gathered the cadets to the center of the group.

Rustle- Rustle-

The thugs surrounding Yuri’s group slowly approached.

“This… their magical presence is strange for bandits. Their numbers aren’t small, either…”

She quickly looked at the other groups. They were similarly surrounded by thugs, tensely gathered together.

Yuri hesitated to move abruptly. Checking the opponents’ reactions first was necessary.

However, the instructor sent her a brief hand signal.

Flick- Flick-

‘That’s…!!’

It was a signal used by adventurers. The meaning was, ‘I’ll hold them back; escape.’

The instructor recognized Yuri as the leader, firmly believing Yuri knew the adventurer’s signal, and chose the last resort to ensure the safety of all the cadets.

Yuri smiled faintly.

“It’s alright, instructor.”

And, placing her hand on the black onyx on her chest, she silently repeated.

“Those who threaten my friends and the instructor… kill them all, Nix.”

The black mist erupting from the black onyx began to surround all of the surrounding thugs.