Ch.155155. Final Evaluation

The monster subjugation operation concluded safely without any casualties. Despite Gilbert, one of the most skilled members of the subjugation team, not participating, it was thanks to Briana who joined in his place and Ian who overcame the pressure of his first real combat.

Briana, known as the strongest in the Empire, maintained her previous skill level despite having been away from the battlefield for a long time.

She beheaded every monster she saw with a single swing of her sword. Moving like a machine, she showed not even the slightest error.

Ian also followed closely behind Briana, cutting down monsters.

Whatever catalyst his first real combat experience provided, his piloting skills showed dramatic growth.

The initially unstable movements of his giant mech stabilized at some point, and he transformed from someone desperately trying to handle monsters to someone who dispatched them like an experienced hunter stalking prey.

As Briana and Ian performed impressively in the subjugation operation, the rest of the team members gained confidence, shook off their combat anxiety, and began to demonstrate their true abilities.

They showed why they were students of the Academy, known for their exceptional talents across the continent. While they weren’t without shortcomings, the professors who participated in the subjugation team filled in those gaps.

After investing a full two days, they were finally able to exterminate all the monsters emerging from Njord Forest.

“I’m afraid they’ll appear in my dreams.”

“The ones that kept crawling even with their guts spilling out were truly…”

Though they had overcome their combat anxiety, the subjugation operation left a deep impression about monsters.

Creatures contaminated with magical energy showed vitality that differed fundamentally from ordinary living beings.

Losing arms or legs had no effect on the monsters. Magical energy could be seen seeping into their wounds, gradually healing them.

Medium to high-level monsters weren’t affected at all even when their abdomens were completely torn open.

The sight of them howling while dragging their entrails and bleeding profusely was deeply etched into the minds of the subjugation team members.

They finally realized through direct experience that the emphasis placed on the dangers of monsters had not been exaggerated at all.

After the monster subjugation operation ended, the Empire swiftly dispatched Ranger units to search for and eliminate any remaining monsters, along with an investigation team to determine the cause of the monster outbreak.

Since monsters had previously only appeared in designated contaminated areas, the Empire judged the appearance of monsters in Njord Mountain, which wasn’t a contaminated zone, to be an extremely dangerous situation.

The subjugation team’s mission naturally extended to blockading Njord Mountain until the Ranger units and investigation team arrived. This was a precautionary measure to prevent any possible incidents. Given that the Empire recognized the severity of the current situation, their dispatch was carried out promptly.

In the end, the subjugation team returned to the Academy exactly one week after they had departed for the monster subjugation operation.

The students who had been grinding their teeth with determination to get good grades before leaving for the operation could only fully appreciate that they had survived safely when they saw the familiar Academy landscape again.

For them, this subjugation operation became both a growing pain they would never experience again and a meaningful experience showing that the world they lived in was by no means easy.

***

After returning from the completed subjugation operation, only evaluations remained in the Academy’s academic schedule.

The students who had completed the major academic event of monster subjugation felt grateful for the return to daily life, but couldn’t help looking glum when faced with the major task of evaluations.

It was a time that came equally to all—both the noble children forced to enter the Academy to prove their blue blood and the commoner children who entered the Academy for their bright futures.

While the Academy’s comprehensive evaluation didn’t have a fixed assessment method, there were two evaluations conducted annually like regular events.

These evaluations were held twice, with the semester break as the dividing point. The first was the competition held before the semester break, and the second was the final evaluation held after the semester break following the monster subjugation operation.

While the competition strictly consisted of practical skills with rankings directly affecting grades, the final evaluation focused more on theoretical assessments.

Students would be tested on continental history, military science, etiquette, and other theories learned at the Academy.

Of course, even though it was primarily theoretical, practical evaluations weren’t excluded. But whereas the competition scored students based on duels between them and their rankings, the final evaluation focused on scoring students based on how they solved predetermined obstacles.

While duels often had many variables that could change rankings, the obstacle course of the final evaluation showed somewhat different characteristics.

The obstacles created by the Academy changed every year—sometimes the test was to pass through an obstacle course, and other times it was to clear an artificial dungeon.

They were designed so that students could only get good scores by using all the knowledge they had learned so far—theoretical knowledge, survival skills, giant mech piloting techniques, and swordsmanship.

Because of this, Academy students didn’t hesitate to review everything they had learned, shutting themselves in the library and training rooms. This had become the common daily routine for Demeia Academy students these days.

Ian was also studying for the Academy’s final evaluation with Fresia’s help. Even as the protagonist of this world, he couldn’t neglect his studies. He was a natural genius, but it was only natural that such a genius would grow faster when he put in effort.

Moreover, with Gilbert as his rival, he couldn’t afford to slack off for even a moment. Even Gilbert, who was considered superior to Ian, never stopped training.

After studying for a while, Ian suddenly got stuck on a problem and asked his best teacher who had been with him all day.

“Fresia, how do I solve this?”

[…]

“Fresia?”

[Ah, yes. Sorry, what did you say?]

Ian raised an eyebrow at Fresia’s uncharacteristic behavior.

Come to think of it, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Fresia had been seeming absent-minded lately. To be precise, since returning from the subjugation operation, she had frequently failed to hear what he said or responded late, just like now.

At first, he thought it was nothing, but as these instances increased, Ian couldn’t help but worry. Fresia was perhaps the greatest fortune he could have in his life, both past and future, and a life partner necessary for him to become the best.

So when Fresia showed unusual behavior unlike her normal self, Ian couldn’t help but be concerned.

“Fresia, is something wrong? You seem to be spacing out a lot lately.”

[It’s nothing. I just… needed some time to think.]

Ian realized from her answer that something had changed in her. He couldn’t help but notice. From her saying she needed time to think, anyone who wasn’t a fool could immediately realize she was trying to hide something.

But Ian didn’t try to pry it out of her. He and Fresia were bound by a contract, and in principle, they couldn’t do anything harmful to each other. Even Fresia, who could be called a super artificial spirit, was fundamentally an artificial spirit.

The contract system was designed to prevent actions harmful to the contractor, so even if Fresia was hiding something, it clearly wouldn’t be harmful to Ian himself.

And as a gentleman with a sense of style, he had the chivalry to respect the secrets of Fresia, who had a female form.

“Alright. If you say so, then that must be it. But if something’s wrong, I’d like you to tell me. I am your contractor, after all.”

[Yes, that’s right. I think I’ve been having too many useless thoughts lately.]

Fresia’s voice tone rose. At that familiar tone, Ian smiled broadly. It seemed like she had finally returned to the Fresia he knew.

[So what were you trying to say?]

“I wanted to ask about solving this problem.”

[Ah, problem solving? Wait, if it’s that, you can do it like this.]

Having returned to her usual self, Fresia began analyzing the problem Ian had asked about from multiple angles and explaining it in a way he could easily understand. Ian, satisfied with Fresia’s return to normal, began to focus on solving the problem.

After studying theory with Fresia’s help for several hours, Ian suddenly realized he had been sitting for a long time. He stretched and got up from his seat.

Having completed today’s theoretical study quota, he now planned to move his body. Even though theoretical scores were important in the final evaluation, practical scores weren’t measured any lower.

Especially since the practical portion of the final evaluation could include unpredictable tasks, it was necessary to raise his physical sensitivity through advance training.

The training room was crowded with students who had the same idea as Ian. There weren’t many people who regularly used the training room, and most were students who had gathered for last-minute cramming before the final evaluation.

Ian, who regularly used the training room, gave light hand greetings to the familiar faces and found his spot. Recently, due to Fresia’s repeated emphasis on the importance of physical training, he had pushed his usual magical training to the back burner.

According to her, the key to giant mech piloting technique was transmitting clear images to the artificial spirit. Naturally, the best way to create those images was when one could physically do it themselves.

Ironically, physical training and sword training were greatly helpful for giant mech piloting techniques. For Ian, who had neglected physical training until now, this was quite surprising.

Come to think of it, before his current opposition with Gilbert, what Gilbert had told him in the training room was also about the importance of physical training. He already knew the importance of physical training better than anyone else. That was the story.

Ian was only now fully realizing that Gilbert’s almost supernatural piloting skills were based on that foundation.

“By the way, what’s that sword?”

Ian tilted his head, looking at the sword attached to Gilbert’s waist. Until now, he had never seen Gilbert carrying any sword other than the standard-issue one provided by the Academy.

Could it be something he received from his exclusive mentor, Briana?

After considering various possibilities, Ian soon dismissed it from his mind.

After all, didn’t he have an heirloom sword passed down through his family?

No matter what sword Gilbert brought, it would pale in comparison to that legendary sword.

Having shifted his attention away from Gilbert, Ian began training his body according to Fresia’s training schedule. The thought of starting that murderous and grueling training made him feel breathless.