Ch.126125. And Hostility (2)

# 125. And Hostility (2)

One day during a mock battle for survival training.

Reina, who had been struggling with the pressure of constantly handling important tasks, sought out Albert after the mock battle ended.

Reina remained silent, but he seemed to understand why she had come to him.

“Just believe.”

“Huh?”

“Just believe, believe that you can do it.”

Then he added:

“That’s all you can do, and you have to succeed. It’s probably not very helpful advice, but there’s no other way.”

Indeed, it wasn’t particularly helpful in that situation, and those words alone couldn’t eliminate her burden.

However, at the most critical moment, when the pressure reached its peak, things were different.

Now, by repeating that belief he had taught her—the belief that she could do it—she was able to ease her tension, if only slightly.

“I can do this.”

Muttering those words, Reina activated [Lightning Speed] and [Swift].

The moment she used these skills, her [Stealth] was dispelled, and she entered the opposing team’s field of vision.

They tried to stop Reina who had suddenly appeared, especially with [Lightning Speed] activated, but it was futile.

Her overwhelming speed was something that even Albert or herself might not be able to block.

With that speed, Reina precisely targeted her mark.

-Crackle!-

Sparks enveloped Reina’s body.

Those brilliant sparks charged toward Chris at a terrifying speed.

Then came the sound of friction.

-Slash!!-

Everyone’s attention focused on the red blood that burst forth with that sound.

Reina had sharply targeted Chris using her overwhelming speed, and he had no chance to take any countermeasures.

With his chest—specifically his heart—pierced, Chris lost consciousness and collapsed, immediately teleporting somewhere in a flash of bright light.

Reina watched this and said:

“Did… did I do it?”

“Of course you did.”

“Well done.”

Hearing her teammates’ words, Reina let out a sigh of relief and finally put down her burden.

“Now things are a bit more fair.”

“Tch…”

Chris had been the team’s center in her absence.

Now that Chris had been eliminated due to their strategy, his team fell into confusion without their core member.

Conversely, morale skyrocketed for the team whose strategy had succeeded.

“This means we’ll win.”

“Stop talking nonsense and take the lead.”

“…”

Even though they had only taken out one person, making it a manageable 5-vs-5 situation, the contrast in the two teams’ emotions was evident.

The excited Raycle and Leo vigorously charged forward to resume the battle, while Chris’s teammates responded with bitter feelings in their hearts.

-Thud! Crackle!-

Raycle’s sharp fists and Leo’s brilliant lightning struck Briton, while Eve supported them from behind.

Reina also drank a mana potion and immediately joined the battle.

With heightened morale, they actively pushed against their opponents, and their actions led to good results.

Briton, who had been holding the front line with Chris, couldn’t block their attacks alone.

“Kind of pitiful, isn’t it?”

Briton’s shield, despite being described as invincible, shattered, and he received numerous attacks.

Of course, even with the shield that was responsible for his defensive capabilities gone, he didn’t immediately get eliminated thanks to his inherent defensive strength.

However, with even his shield broken, he couldn’t continue tanking for long.

Just as Briton was about to be eliminated, Raycle’s fist flew toward him.

-Thud!!-

Raycle looked at what his fist had connected with.

“Huh?”

Normally, Briton should have been eliminated after taking that attack, but that didn’t happen.

What Raycle’s fist had connected with wasn’t Briton.

And what had blocked his fist in Briton’s place was enough to reverse the current situation.

“No way…”

What Raycle saw, what had just blocked his fist, was a large chunk of ice, and that ice reminded everyone of someone who had been missing until now.

Those who saw the ice chunk turned their gaze in the direction it had come from, and at the end of that gaze was someone some had been hoping for, and others had been worried about.

“Princess!”

There she was, breathing heavily and clutching her right arm, which was streaming with red blood.

She seemed quite exhausted from her fierce battle with Albert.

Her teammates, including Aelin, approached her.

“Did you win!? You won, right!?”

“Of course… that’s why I’m here now…”

She lost her balance and sat down on the ground as she continued speaking.

“But… I’m in terrible shape…”

After that, she leaned against the wall, catching her breath and resting in that state.

“My mana is almost depleted, but… I can still help a little.”

“You don’t need to push yourself so hard…”

After hearing those words, she checked the condition of her teammates.

Then she revealed the reality to her teammates who were saying such things.

“Without me, don’t you think we’ll lose…?”

Her words reflected the reality of the situation.

The core members of the team, Chris and her.

One had already been eliminated, and the other was in a state that could be considered combat-incapable.

“I can manage about three more times… and please look ahead now instead of at me… if we stay like this any longer, we’re in real danger.”

“Yes!”

Those who confirmed her combat-incapable state rushed in quickly, trying to end the situation before she could recover.

However, her team wasn’t just going to take it passively.

They could receive her help, though limited, and above all, their morale had returned.

“Could… someone please block those bullets in front of me…”

Of course, since she was unable to move, they had no choice but to fight while protecting her, but it wasn’t too much of a problem.

Briton, who once again used [Invincible Wall], protected her, while Rachel, Aelin, and Riel attacked the enemy’s front line from a distance.

Those who had been recklessly trying to eliminate her couldn’t avoid their magic and bullets, and so they continued the battle while taking those attacks.

-Thud! Thud!!-

Briton, who was taking all their attacks, couldn’t hold out much longer, but the same was true for the opponents.

As the war of attrition dragged on, she raised her delicate hand—now stained with red blood due to the situation—and held up her staff.

She then aimed at Raycle, who could be considered the enemy’s core, and cast a spell.

-Crack!!-

That ice, formed in the shape of a sword at tremendous speed, soon flew toward Raycle.

Distracted by Briton, he didn’t even realize something was flying toward him until the ice sword wounded him.

“Ugh…!”

Pierced by the sword, Raycle seemed confused by the sudden attack and staggered, unable to maintain his balance properly.

“Now… you know what to do?”

Her teammates concentrated their firepower on Raycle as if they had been waiting for this moment, and Raycle had no choice but to take those attacks helplessly.

-Whoosh! Crackle!-

Rachel’s [Blue Flame] and Aelin’s [Electric Magic] engulfed him, and Riel’s sniper shot hit with precision.

Taking all those attacks at once, he teleported away in a bright light, just like Chris had earlier.

And she watched the scene with admiration.

“Now… your teamwork is good. I guess my hard work teaching you paid off…?”

As she said, their team movements noticeably improved as soon as she joined the battle, leading to Raycle’s elimination.

“It should be easier now. Princess, you can rest now! We’ll handle it ourselves!”

“Indeed, I can rest more comfortably now.”

Aelin showed confidence with good reason, and she was relieved at having eliminated the enemy’s key figure.

In fact, from the moment Raycle was eliminated, the opponents began to lose strength and crumble, allowing them to secure victory easily.

After achieving victory, they enjoyed a sweet rest period.

“I knew we could count on you, Princess!”

“But… it was such a difficult win… I don’t feel like I did particularly well.”

Indeed, while she had won in the end, the margin wasn’t that significant.

As evidence, she had joined the battlefield in a state where she could barely move due to her injuries.

“That’s enough.”

“We would have lost if we had just fought 5 vs 6 from the start.”

“It’s all thanks to you all… If I had won but you had lost, we would have lost overall.”

As she said, victory was possible because she had won and the main force had bought enough time.

“Now we can take it a bit easier.”

After Albert’s team—considered the strongest team besides theirs—was eliminated, her team gained the upper hand and dominated the other teams.

And after that, without any further twists, they claimed the championship.