Ch.107106. The First Trial (9)

# 106. The First Trial (9)

“Yeah… it feels like it’s been a long time.”

Since I’d been spending most of my time with all our party members lately, being alone with just the two of us felt quite unfamiliar.

“Now that you mention it, you’re right.”

Given our circumstances, we hadn’t been able to go on a proper date.

“But now that things have settled down a bit, don’t you think we’ll have more chances to be alone together?”

“That would be nice.”

“And now we’ve gained recognition too.”

Her expression looked incredibly relaxed as she said those words.

And seeing her like that made me feel at ease as well.

We had crossed a mountain that had to be overcome—an enormously huge mountain at that—so it was only natural to feel psychologically stable.

“I finally feel some relief.”

As I chatted with her, it finally sank in that we had truly crossed that mountain.

What made it even more rewarding was that it wasn’t just one mountain we had overcome.

“You can’t relax just yet. The final exams are coming up soon, you know?”

“Ah…”

The reality she forced me to face was crueler than I’d thought.

“Finals already… It doesn’t feel like I’ve done much, but time sure flies…”

It seemed like just yesterday that I’d enrolled in the Academy, but the first semester was already coming to an end.

“You’ve done plenty, especially you, Albert. But time does fly quickly. Maybe it feels that way because we’ve had so many significant events.”

“We have had a lot going on…”

But at that moment, only one thing came to mind.

‘All I can think about is confessing to her…’

Perhaps because that memory had such a strong impact, I couldn’t really recall other memories clearly.

They were just vague recollections like “Oh, that happened too,” but I couldn’t remember the details vividly.

“And there will be more to come.”

I wanted to create more good memories with her in the future.

‘But what is she planning to do during the break…?’

It seemed I wasn’t the only one with that curiosity, as she asked me about it first.

“By the way… what are you planning to do during the break, Albert?”

“Hmm… I don’t think it’ll be much different from now. If anything, I’ll just have more time for training.”

If Aelin or Riel heard this, they’d call me crazy, but I thought this was normal.

To me, vacation wasn’t a time for rest but a time to train on my own.

Of course, most students considered breaks as simply time off.

That’s why if you worked hard during the break, you could grow much faster than others.

‘It’s not good if only I improve…’

It seemed necessary to take some measures to ensure everyone trained hard during that period.

Not necessarily all the Academy students, but at least our party members should.

“Then, would you like to go somewhere with me during the break?”

“During the break?”

“Yes, I need to go somewhere during the break… and if I’m going, I’d like to go with you, Albert.”

The fact that she was bringing this up in advance suggested it was quite a distant journey.

I didn’t know where she was going, but I wanted to follow her.

‘Traveling together…’

It wouldn’t be just the two of us, of course, but I was still happy about it.

“But… where are we going and why?”

“You know how the Babylon Kingdom has recently expanded its alliance, right?”

“Yes, I heard there were quite a few beast-folk on their main force in the recent battle.”

Rumors had spread that the Babylon Kingdom had formed an alliance with Shandria, the nation of beast-folk, following their alliance with Setharin, the nation of insect-folk.

And this recent incident had confirmed those rumors.

“But that country is quite strong, isn’t it? They have a sizable population, and their race is inherently powerful like the demon folk.”

“That’s right.”

Though not as strong as the celestial race, they were certainly a dangerous species.

Insect-folk, being fundamentally insects, were vulnerable to fire-attribute attacks, making them easier to deal with, but beast-folk needed to be overwhelmed with pure firepower.

The one saving grace was that beast-folk had low magical defense.

“So we’re also trying to expand our alliance.”

“Is our destination the Persian Kingdom, then?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

We definitely needed the elves’ help.

To effectively counter the beast-folk, it made sense to seek assistance from elves who specialized in magic.

“The Persian Kingdom…”

“What’s wrong? Do you have bad memories of it?”

“Ah… no, that’s not it.”

The mention of elves reminded me of what happened during the midterm exams.

‘I wonder how she’s doing?’

The image of that tomboy princess lingered in my mind.

“What are you thinking about so intently?”

“Just recalling some old memories.”

“How did it go back then?”

“We successfully formed an alliance, though it’s happening earlier this time around.”

Since the war had been moved up, all war-related matters naturally had to be accelerated as well.

“That’s good to hear. I was worried because I’ve heard elves can be quite stubborn… but that’s probably just a stereotype, right?”

“Well… it really depends on the individual. There are elves who aren’t like that… but it’s true that many elves are stubborn.”

The reputation of elves being stubborn didn’t come from nowhere.

Whether it was because they lived long lives or because they lived in remote areas, there were quite a few who had inflexible and frustrating personalities.

“But their skills are top-notch. When it comes to magic, we’re no match for them.”

“Even our country’s great mages?”

“Well… they have an overwhelming advantage in numbers.”

And in terms of skill, the Persian Kingdom was superior.

The difference started with the basic fact that their entire population could use magic.

“And we have more warriors than mages.”

“The Persian Kingdom has warriors too, right?”

“Yes, usually in the form of magic swordsmen or magic archers. And there are almost no elves who fight without weapons.”

Since elves had a different quality of mana than humans, their magic was incredibly powerful when channeled through weapons.

“They’re physically weaker than us without weapons.”

Elves had low base stats except for mana.

Unlike demons and humans, whose stat distribution varied by individual, elves always had their stats distributed with a focus on mana.

“Elves kind of remind me of you—extremely high mana but lower other stats.”

“I’ll have you know my agility is somewhat high… a little…”

She seemed embarrassed to be bringing up her agility in front of me.

“It might not compare to yours, Albert, but it’s about average.”

“Average, huh… is that true?”

“It really is!”

“Okay…”

Considering how efficiently she used [Haste], there might be some truth to her claim.

In reality, she didn’t really need other stats.

Strength was unnecessary, and defensive stats or skills were adequately covered by her ice wall.

Agility was the only remaining stat that was somewhat useful and not completely worthless.

“You’re the same, Albert. Apart from strength and agility, all your other stats are low.”

“True. I wonder why we’re like this?”

“But isn’t that a good thing?”

As she said, our current stat distribution was optimal.

And not just for us—it was generally better to have stats concentrated in specific areas.

If your strengths could overwhelm your weaknesses, it didn’t matter how many weaknesses you had.

“It is good, I was just curious.”

I said this as I tried to get up.

She was alarmed when she saw me slowly rising.

“W-wait! You shouldn’t be moving yet…”

“It’s surprisingly okay.”

There was still some pain, but it was bearable.

“Doesn’t it hurt?”

“It does, but I can handle it.”

“I’ve been wondering… what kind of body do you have?”

“It’s all thanks to [Regeneration].”

“You have [Regeneration]?!”

She was surprised to learn that I had the passive skill [Regeneration].

“I came to this time period with the skills I originally had.”

“Ah… that makes sense then.”

“Besides, [Regeneration] isn’t that rare of a skill, is it?”

It was a common skill that anyone could acquire if they met the conditions.

“What? It’s definitely rare. It’s known as the exclusive domain of battle maniacs.”

“Is it that special?”

“Yes, it is.”

I had no reason to know about the skills of ordinary hunters, and the only status screens I’d seen were records of great figures, so I wasn’t aware that [Regeneration] was considered that rare.

“Does the Emperor have it?”

“I would assume so.”

“You sound so disinterested.”

“I’ve heard enough about Father’s stats and skills to last a lifetime.”

“From whom?”

“From him personally…”

I couldn’t help but laugh.

‘I see…’

Imagining the Emperor explaining his own strength to her made me feel quite sorry for her.

“I’m glad Albert doesn’t do that.”

The thought of boasting about my stats or skills to someone had never even crossed my mind.

“I could if you want me to.”

“No? That’s okay…”

Judging by her expression, I definitely shouldn’t do that.

She looked like she wouldn’t let me off easy if I did, which made me want to try it, but I held back.

“I won’t…”

“Good choice.”

Just as her expression softened, my phone suddenly rang.

-Ding!-

I immediately took out my phone to check the source of the sound.

“Who is it?”

“It’s Aelin. Looks like she’s at the library right now.”

The message read:

-Hey, you don’t have plans for the break, right? His Majesty the Emperor is visiting the Persian Kingdom to establish a military alliance, and Her Majesty the Empress wants to take us along. You’re okay with that, right?-

I showed the message to her as well.

“I was going to ask you about it, but I guess I don’t need to now.”

“So who all is going?”

“Their Majesties, me, Albert, Aelin, and about two Special Forces members who don’t have missions. Also, Lady Amelia and the Saint will come along since we need someone to guide us there. A little over ten people in total.”

It was an impressive lineup that left me speechless.

“Is it… really okay for us to join?”

“Of course. If Albert isn’t qualified to join, then neither am I.”

Excluding us, it was a combination that even Bael would be intimidated by.

“Anyone watching would think we’re going to hunt a Demon Lord or something…”

“It certainly seems that way.”

With this development, I couldn’t help but look forward to the break.

Initially, I was just happy about traveling with her, but now I was excited about the prospect of seeing all these members in person.

“Looks like the break will be busy too.”