Chapter 20 – Special Entrance Exam

From that point on, we wandered smoothly through the labyrinth.

Whenever a Lizardman appeared, the poor girl would blast its head apart—again and again.

If I clapped and praised her from the side, she got even more excited and started showing off all kinds of magic.

Thanks to her, I didn’t have to break a sweat for quite a long time.

If we get a little closer, she might even lend me money, I thought. She looks tough on the outside, but deep down, she’s a pushover.

“Why do you keep looking at me like that?” she demanded.

“How was I looking at you?”

“I don’t know, but it makes me feel bad.”

This is exactly why I hate perceptive brats.

I shrugged carelessly and kept walking. “It’s because you don’t like me.”

“Yeah, I really don’t like you.”

“I don’t like you either.”

“Why?”

“Why should I like someone who dislikes me?”

Her violet eyes rolled around restlessly, and her lips moved as if trying to find the right words.

When she couldn’t come up with anything, she squinted at me and snapped, “You’re seriously annoying.”

“I know.”

“If you weren’t a noble, especially a duke’s daughter, someone would’ve beaten you to death by now.”

I heard that a lot in my previous life, too. In fact, I even got beaten to death once.

“And it’s infuriating because you’re so short on top of that,” she added.

“I’m not that much shorter than you.”

“I’m taller than you! Way taller! You’re looking up at me right now, aren’t you?”

“From other people’s perspectives, we probably look the same.”

The poor girl looked to be around 150 centimeters tall, maybe slightly more. I was about a handspan shorter.

So, if someone saw us from above, we’d look the same height.

“No, we’re not. I’m taller—everywhere, including my chest.”

“Comparing yourself to me? Isn’t that kind of ridiculous? Or… maybe it’s not?”

“Wh-What?! You—You…!”

I covered the poor girl’s mouth as her face turned bright red.

“Mmmph?!”

“Look,” I said, pointing toward a corner of the labyrinth.

Shadows flickered along the wall as if a fire had been lit.

They were not human shadows. Nor were they Lizardmen, like the ones we’d fought earlier.

There were six of them.

Judging by their weapons, there were three spears, two bows, and one staff.

I glanced at the poor girl beside me. As expected, her face had gone pale.

“Do you know what those are?”

The girl carefully removed my hand from her mouth and whispered, “…They’re a kind of elite monster among Lizardmen. Unlike regular Lizardmen, they have intelligence. And… it seems like there’s even a mage among them.”

She knew exactly what they were.

As she said, these weren’t ordinary Lizardmen.

In simple terms, they were intelligent monsters.

In other words…

They were monsters blessed by demons.

There are ranks among demons, just as there are among monsters.

When it comes to monsters, the ranks are as follows:

Basic, Low, Intermediate, High, Top-tier.

And then there’s Calamity.

These six categories cover all monsters.

The ones in front of us were low-rank monsters—beasts blessed by lesser demons, raised from their basic state.

I didn’t expect them to include low-rank monsters here. The more I see, the more I like the thoroughness of this test.

As I mentally raised the academy’s evaluation in my mind, I turned back to the pale-faced girl.

“Can you take them down?”

“…Maybe one at a time, but not all six at once.”

Her voice trembled as she bit her lip and glared at me.

“I’m not weak; I’m just low on mana. Why are you looking at me like that? You know how many Lizardmen I’ve killed.”

“What, like thirty?”

“Thirty-seven! And I burst their heads all at once.”

“Yeah, I know. You did great. It was impressive.”

She had killed thirty-seven Lizardmen without a single mistake.

Well, toward the middle of the fight, she started overusing bigger spells because I kept praising her. But still, her performance was solid.

“Then why are you looking at me like that?”

“I think you can take them down.”

“…What?”

Her eyes widened.

“You were casting magic without incantations earlier. If you chant the spells, won’t your mana consumption drop drastically?”

“…That’s true.”

Kaloso used to do the same. He could cast all his magic without incantations. If his mana consumption became too high, he’d chant, but if he was sure it would be the last spell of the fight, he’d cast even large-scale magic without an incantation.

“Then why can’t you do it?”

“It’s too dangerous. Chanting takes time, and during that time… we could both die.”

I thought about arguing that it’s just a fake labyrinth, but I kept my mouth shut. She’d probably scream, “What do you mean fake?! Are you stupid?! How is this a fake labyrinth?!”

“I’ll protect you while you cast,” I offered.

“What…?”

“Use any magic you want. I’ll guard you. And seriously, why are you trying to handle everything alone? You’re useless without someone in the front line.”

“That’s because you’re a chimp.”

“What the—! Hey!”

“Eek!”

“Such a coward.”

Her face flushed, and she stared at me in confusion. She looked as if she was both embarrassed and indignant.

Was she really about to hit me? This tiny girl? And did I really flinch?

Unbelievable…

Her reaction was so different from Yurasia’s that it was amusing.

Anyway, it was time to wrap this up. Even though they said the clear time didn’t matter as long as we took down the Basilisk, we were dragging this out too long.

“Did you forget what I said I was going to hunt?” I asked.

“…Like I’d forget that insane idea.”

“Then why are you trying to protect me? I’m the one who should protect you.”

“Why are you being like this? Also, you haven’t even thanked me.”

“Oh, right. Thanks for everything so far. But honestly, think about it—someone who says they’re going to hunt a Basilisk must be strong, right?”

“No matter how strong a chimp, a martial artist isn’t going to be that strong.”

Grumbling, she grabbed my arm and pulled me along. Her hand was cold. Her expression was calm, but her body was trembling with fear.

“Why are you choosing the dangerous route when there’s a safer option? Are you really a chimp?”

Honestly, I could just leave her here and finish the task on my own.

But I had a reason for pushing her to use magic.

I needed to confirm something.

Facing the Basilisk would be too late. She was already trembling; if we waited until then, it would be impossible.

This was the right moment to find out.

So I provoked her.

“Pftt. Big talk, but you’re just a pathetic weakling.”

“W-What?!”

“Didn’t you claim you spent over two years adventuring in Gevihenum, got trapped in labyrinths, and even killed an ogre alone? But now you’re scared of six Lizardmen?”

“That’s not true!”

Her lips quivered as she clenched her fists.

“What are you going to do, huh? With no mana left, what can a useless, lying mage do?”

“Fine…! I’ll show you! I don’t need your help, chimp! Just sit back and watch!”

Her face flushed bright red as she stormed forward, leaving traces of violet mana behind.

She exhaled deeply. A faint scent of milk-flavored macarons lingered in the air. Though her body trembled, her violet eyes glinted sharply.

Then, she began chanting.

It wasn’t a foreign language—just ordinary words, but distorted by the flow of mana.

The chant continued, and the mana infused into each syllable began to take shape.

Three circles of mana formed, spinning and glowing brightly.

When she opened her eyes, the spell was complete.

“Lightning.”

Bluish light flooded the labyrinth.

[KKKKKRRRAAAAAAAAAAA―!]

Three agonizing screams echoed.

I couldn’t tell if the frontliners or the ones in the back had died. The girl began a new chant.

Her mana circle spun once more, stronger than before, blowing back her hood.

Her hood fell back, revealing her hair—dark blue with streaks of violet, reminiscent of the sky just before dawn. Sweat trickled down her neck, following the curve of her slender shoulders.

“…Floral Spear.”

A gust of wind shot forward.

The monsters screamed again as the spell struck them, and the girl staggered from the exertion. Yet, even as she wobbled, she turned toward me with a smug grin.

“See that… Don’t ever say stuff like that to me again—”

At that moment—

Thwip—

A sharp sound cut through the air from within the cloud of dust.

An arrow flew straight toward her chest. She didn’t react in time, her body still recovering from the spell. Stabilizing herself seemed to be the best she could manage.

“Everything was perfect except the finish.”

I grabbed her shoulder just before she collapsed. Wrapping my arm around her limp body, I reached out with my other hand and caught the arrow mid-air.

Thump—

“W-What…?”

She stared at the arrow, now clenched in my hand, mere inches away from her chest. Her whole body trembled as she realized how close she had come to death.

“See? I’m good at catching arrows, too.”

Grinning, I hurled the arrow back toward the Lizardmen.

Fwoosh—Crack!

The arrow pierced through the dust, shattering one of the Lizardmen’s heads.

“See that? If you ever call me a chimp again, your head’s going to end up like that.”

I gently tapped her forehead as I spoke.

Her violet eyes glistened with unshed tears.

The corners of her mouth, usually full of sass, trembled slightly.

Sweat rolled down her neck, glistening in the dim light.

“…What the hell was that?” she gasped.

Her ragged breathing was laced with frustration. A sigh escaped her lips, carrying the faint scent of macarons. Beneath her hood, I caught a hint of soap and the tang of sweat.

“What else? I stopped an arrow.”

Her lips parted slightly in disbelief, leaving her momentarily speechless.

Without warning, I popped a mint candy into her mouth.

Reflexively, she closed her lips around it. Her expression twisted in distaste as the mint flavor spread through her mouth.

“I really hate you,” she muttered.

“I hate you too,” I replied.