Chapter 77
The first-year students were buzzing around.
Currently, aside from the professors, some staff members and all the first-years were waiting at the entrance of the Nest.
Curiosity bubbled as they beheld the Nest for the first time; many couldn’t resist touching or poking at the inner wall.
The texture, reminiscent of organic tissue, would give in when pressed and then bounce back like pudding.
While some laughed at the silly sight, others engaged in a deeper study of its structure, and there were students frozen at the thought of meeting Altife in the future.
The entrance of the cave-like Nest was fitted with multiple magical mechanisms, so even if intruders wanted to attack, they were rendered incapable. The tentacles on the walls couldn’t even make the faintest movements.
This was possible because the owner of this Nest was classified as a level three danger, a bishop, and currently, there was no master present.
I noticed a woman with white hair watching them. Her eyes were calm, unyielding, and steady.
“You’re rather composed.”
The emotions Alicia harbored towards Altife could be described as exceedingly grim.
Since they were the ones who took everything from her, I expected her to show signs of tension or anger, even if it was just a domesticated Altife; instead, her response was unexpectedly serene.
“Before entering the Nest, I was restless and found it hard to remain composed, but strangely enough, once I entered, I calmed down.”
“Well, that’s good. It’s certainly better to analyze the situation calmly rather than succumbing to chaotic feelings and making mistakes.”
Alicia turned her head to look up at me. Her sea-blue eyes resembled that of a lake.
“If I may ask, do you still believe that the unusual situation you mentioned before has a 20% chance of occurring?”
“Statistically, yes. However… even if they move, understanding it is nearly impossible, so I can’t definitively predict anything.”
She responded with gratitude for my answer, adding, “Regardless of the situation we face, I will follow the Young Master’s orders.”
Her loyalty was strong enough that it even brought to mind Bram, who was acting separately in the distance.
It was indeed a reliable statement and attitude, though ironically, Alicia wasn’t the protagonist of this story, and there was no need for her to be so resolute.
? Now, entry into the Nest will be permitted. As previously announced, the teams approaching will please prepare.
The voice echoed from a magical device installed in the squishy walls of the Nest, quieting the students’ chatter.
? First team, Class 1 Team 3, ‘Liam, Haliana, Lucaiel, Laban, Karol Ophelia, Nikela,’ please step forward immediately. Once again, the first…
“Philia, Nikela, please stand ready for immediate departure. Once again, I repeat, first…”
Meanwhile, a scene of Liam and his party in motion is captured. Many are cheering for them or watching with curious eyes.
In the midst of this, the leader Liam locked eyes with someone.
He looked quite resolute, as if he had made some firm decision. The gaze crossed briefly and quickly ended.
“Hmm….”
In that short moment, considering Liam’s mental state and emotions in relation to his actions.
The probability of the assumed worrying scenario occurring is several times lower than that of it not happening… but perhaps.
Could Liam’s first awakening not be the tragedy of the early second year at the Academia, but rather this event? That thought crossed his mind.
*
“Kyaaaaah????!”
The horrific screams of Altife filled the nest,
Hearing their chilling cries, Liam’s party continued the battle.
“Ophelia! Enemy Altife at 1 o’clock, 100 meters!”
Swish??!!
Ophelia’s arrow pierced through the air. She precisely targeted the leg of a priest-level Altife attempting to leap in. It lost its leg and fell to the ground.
“Lucaiel! One at 3 o’clock. Haliana, bombard the two at 6 o’clock with elemental magic!”
“I was going to do it even without the order!”
“Yes, understood!”
At Liam’s command, the werewolf Lucaiel struck through the thick hide of the Altife with his claw cloaked in aura.
Haliana formed lightning in mid-air like a slender staff and sent it hurling, burning the Altife to black ash.
However, one Altife, perhaps having sustained less damage, charged again.
Haliana desperately gathered mana to use magic, but was suddenly interrupted by a sharp tentacle that sprang from the interior wall.
“Haliana??!”
Lucaiel shouted.
The Altife charged with a grotesque grin, and just as Haliana’s face was painted with fear…
Bam?!
A wind spirit summoned by Nikela collided with the Altife and halted its action. Seizing the opportunity, Liam dashed forward and beheaded the monster.
Crisp.
In the wake of Liam’s sword, there remained an empty neck, a burn mark, and a spark of electricity. A moment later, red blood burst forth.
Thus, the battle came to an end.
Liam sidestepped the spurt of blood and scanned everyone.
Lucaiel rushed over to Haliana, checking her condition. Although surprised, she seemed to be fine. She gave a somewhat awkward smile, claiming she was alright.
Lucaiel also appeared to be unscathed, albeit worried.
Ophelia looked a little tired, but it seemed she could still continue the fight without issue.
In the cave-like structure, it was inconvenient for her to use a bow, so her mana had been heavily drained elsewhere.
“Liam… blood.”
“Ah.”
Nikela took out a handkerchief and wiped the Altife blood off Liam’s face.
No matter how much one tried to avoid it, blood splattering during battle was inevitable. It would soon get dirty again, but rejecting Nikela’s kindness would be rude.
“All done…”
Having wiped away the blood, Nikela smiled contentedly but soon recalled her actions and pulled her hood down to hide her expression.
She looked like a hermit crab slipping into its shell.
“Liam, aren’t we about to reach the area you mentioned?”
Lucaiel, who had approached with Haliana, asked. His claws, having reverted to their shorter form post-battle, were once again trimmed.
His trimmed nails were now quite short.
Liam pulled out the crumpled map he created based on the original’s information and compared it while looking around.
Most of the areas he had confirmed so far matched the map.
Even though the descriptions in the novel were quite detailed, not everything was noted, leaving some empty sections, and excluding those as illusions, everything matched.
Nodding at the map, Liam said, “We’re almost there. The sixth fork will appear soon.”
He summarized the situation.
The deeper they went inside, the more traps were there to hinder them.
Tentacles sprang from the walls as a standard, and there were times the walls themselves struck them. Sometimes, even the floor would rise up and hit the ceiling.
If it were just traps, it would be one thing, but trying to coordinate with a priest-level Altife was quite a headache.
“Should we take a short break?”
“What the heck are you talking about? Wasn’t this urgent?”
“The intervals between each team’s departure are long. We still have time.”
They had plenty of time before Alicia’s group departed.
The Academia side would also need time to deal with the Altife corpses or resupply from the scouting party that had taken them down.
Liam took out a water bottle and tossed it to Lucaiel. Without a word, he caught it in mid-air and passed it to Haliana, who was next to him.
Their group had already engaged in three battles with Altife. A brief rest would make subsequent progress smoother.
The group members each took a moment to rest in their own way.
Liam moistened his mouth with a suitable amount of water and swallowed a small quantity to avoid any issues.
In the meantime, his thoughts deepened.
According to the original trials, the sixth fork was not part of the test. It was a straight path with no alternate passages.
…To be precise, it was not recognized.
The secret paths activated by multi-magic spells could not be found with ordinary methods.
At the end of those paths was a room containing the actual altar, created to confuse students during the trials or to prevent external invasions.
However, what Liam and his group aimed for was not passing the exam but causing a collapse.
Liam was aware of not only the existence of the sixth fork but also its location and the type of magic involved. Even if it was hidden by magic, knowing the countermeasures posed no problem.
So far, everything was going smoothly.
It felt like he was sailing on a day when the winds were fortunate, carrying the boat along.
“Let’s get going again.”
With those words from Liam, everyone moved busily.
Even if troubles arose, he felt a surge of confidence that they could overcome them together.
These were the people he had maintained close relationships with since the beginning, except for Emily, who was a childhood friend.
With his friends and companions, they delved deeper into the nest.
*
A gathering place for professors and staff members outside the nest.
Unfortunately, due to the current state of magic and technology, direct communication from the internal areas of the nest, except at the entrance, was impossible, making it difficult to monitor all students like during the Class Battle.
Even though it had been remodeled into an exam site, the abnormal mana flow inside the nest could not be simultaneously sensed through familiars or magic.
Therefore, news had to be relayed through the direct movement of the familiars assigned inside the nest to the assembly point outside.
“This is strange.”
“Why suddenly? Is your stomach upset? If it’s the bathroom, it’s inside the airship… Ouch!”
Louisa yanked Paula’s mouth. The spot where her fingers touched Paula’s cheeks turned red like fingerprints. Paula’s lips stretched wide.
“Ugh… Stop it! Ouch, you brat!”
Paula, freed from Louisa’s pinching, blinked back tears, unable to let go of her stinging cheeks.
Ignoring Paula’s reaction, Louisa adjusted her chin. With her other hand, she was reviewing the magic report chart.
“What’s wrong? Why are you getting so serious all of a sudden?”
“There’s a report missing from the personnel guarding the actual altar. They’re supposed to report every 6 hours… they should’ve come in 2 minutes ago.”
“Isn’t that a bit strict for just 2 minutes? Maybe they got held up with something.”
“They’re supposed to rotate and do this job every day. Looking at previous records, the familiars have arrived exactly on time without a second of delay. But suddenly, there’s been no contact for over 2 minutes…”
“Uh… oh, yeah? Now that you mention it, that does seem a bit strange. Like?”
“Like an issue has arisen. I think so too.”
A man intruded into Louisa and Paula’s conversation. He was Lucien, the professor in charge of Class 2.
With eyes always looking weary, as if he hadn’t slept in days, and dark circles under his eyes, he yawned lazily and continued speaking without any reservations.
“The familiars of the observers in charge of the altar have a time attribute, so unless there’s an unusual circumstance, they report automatically as predetermined. If they haven’t arrived, it means… a sudden change has occurred, or perhaps…”
A sharp glint flickered in Lucien’s tired eyes.
“The familiar’s master has died.”
“Eh, no way… that’s too much to believe. Even if someone was being careless, they wouldn’t fall to a level 3 threat, right? Right, Louisa?”
“…….”
Louisa’s expression changed.
Her eyes narrowed into sharp, fierce slits, and a chill ran down her spine at that very moment.
“Wow, there’s plenty of food around.”
An alien voice imitating human speech.
Louisa’s pupils dilated as she hastily summoned the mana within her body. In an instant, she was combat-ready.
KAWA-KAW-KAW-KAW-KAW!
“LOUISA????!!”
Something unidentified had suddenly charged in, crashing into Louisa and flying away.
Paula raised her staff and began to cast a spell. Lucien and two other nearby professors quickly drew their weapons, aiming at the enemy.
Including the entity that had just flown away with Louisa, five enemies had been identified.
“That guy is too hasty; that’s a problem. I don’t like that he took the strongest-looking one.”
“Let it go. It’s not the first time, is it?”
They clearly had human forms, but were too distorted to be called living beings.
Among them, one stood out, wearing a tall hat typical of British gentlemen in films.
“Nice to meet you, professors of Academia. We are the believers dispatched by the Goddess Church to deal with you.”
He displayed human courtesy.
Beneath the hat he tipped, there was another eye on his forehead.
“I’m sorry to impose this right off the bat, but… this is also the will of the Goddess. To absolve your sins and for the prosperity of the Goddess Church.”
The crescent-shaped eye of the man-like figure sparkled ominously.
“Please offer that filthy blood to the altar.”
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