22 – Saint vs. Powerful Person (1)
I was fine until I moved to the forest.
The sudden transfer was embarrassing, but I knew that the group fight would start anyway.
I just hope that I don’t run into other students too soon, and that I’ll be able to run away in moderation even if that happens. I hope so.
“Hmm.”
I carefully held my breath and looked around.
Literally in the woods.
Between the towering old trees, the sunlight that occasionally leaked in illuminated the view.
When I heard a rustling sound and turned my head, there was a funny squirrel there.
The squirrel, which was picking up an acorn that had fallen on the dirt floor, made eye contact with me and hurried away as if startled.
I smiled and looked at the acorns the squirrel had left behind.
Something, how to say.
I don’t know what it is, but it makes me feel at ease?
The unique atmosphere of this forest naturally neutralized my tension.
Thanks to getting out of a bit of rigidity, I was able to look around more calmly.
There is no discernible sign.
Except for the acorn hunter who ran away a moment ago, not a single bird call is heard, let alone the students.
Looking at the squirrels roaming around, it doesn’t seem like there are no wild animals at all.
‘Aren’t there wild boars by any chance?’
I had doubts about what the hell they were raising in the forest inside the school, but I just decided not to care.
Whether there were wild boars or not, they were destined to be beaten and knocked down by the blind magic of the students anyway.
The names are geniuses from all over the continent, so I wouldn’t eat roast pork, though.
Unless it’s a bad condition, like a midterm exam that will be held in a few months, that is, a camp test on an uninhabited island…….
“Let’s see.”
Anyway, the idea ended there.
I had to move slowly, so I lifted the longsword that I had packed before training into the scabbard.
Of course, I don’t think I can do anything with just one sword, since I haven’t learned much swordsmanship and I can’t handle mana.
I just thought it would be better than walking around in this forest with my bare hands.
Concerned that a student from the blue team would suddenly jump out, I cautiously moved away.
Basically, as this battle royale is a team event, the best strategy was to have several people gather and walk around.
It was obvious that either team would prioritize joining a teammate from the same faction.
No matter how much points are given through individual monitoring, shouldn’t they survive anyway?
Hold on and survive, fight for as long as possible to increase your chances of getting a high score.
It was a matter of course, and it was not unusual for students to quickly recruit colleagues from the beginning.
I had to move too.
Anyway, I was practically incompetent, and I was afraid to meet the blue team first, so I couldn’t eat or die if I stayed in one place.
If you look at the probability, it’s 50%.
Meet the blue team?
Then I’ll do my best to run away. If you’re lucky, you might be able to run and survive.
That’s not the case, but if you meet the red team, then you just have to join them.
As I moved between the thick trees for cover, I quietly listened to the sounds in all directions.
Boom, kwaaang…….
I don’t know if this is the outskirts of the forest or the center.
However, it was highly likely that at least some of the students had already caused a collision, as they heard the sound of explosions intermittently.
No matter what, just avoid the explosion.
I didn’t want to get swept away by sticking my head out of vain curiosity. What could be more unfortunate than that?
Don’t fight, don’t get beaten.
Isn’t that good, non-violence.
‘Until I join the others, hold my breath like this… ….’
With that in mind, it was around the time I tried to get as far away from the center of the turmoil as I could.
Diring!
“…… Huh?”
A machine sound that resonated instantaneously, unfamiliar but memorable.
I raised my head with a slightly stiff expression.
A translucent blue hologram.
That was the quest window that popped into my mind once before entering the academy when I was heading to the academy.
────────────────
[Sub Quest]
Academy life began in earnest.
Excellence in team training.
As long as you survive for a long time without dropping out, CP (Clear Points) will be paid differently.
CP can be used later in the gift shop (opened after clearing the first main quest).
Prerequisites.
Show the difference in power to a character who wants to test your mettle. You must not be defeated.
If the conditions are not fulfilled: The suspicion of the individual name ‘Beatrice Louise’ is amplified beyond control.
────────────────
“…… What is this?”
Even though I’ve seen it before, my puzzlement hasn’t changed.
No, on the contrary, I couldn’t help but be more embarrassed than at that time.
Leaving aside whether it was a CP or a gift shop, the descriptions after that were completely incomprehensible.
‘Are you trying to test my skills? …… Who?’
Are you saying someone’s coming for me soon, and there’s going to be a fight?
And win the fight?
Is that a prerequisite?
Compared to the main quest that appeared at the time of admission to the academy, it was a fairly ambiguous condition.
But what I couldn’t understand more than that was the phrase written at the bottom.
A failure would amplify Beatrice’s doubts.
I hesitated for a moment, then hardened my expression.
“No way… ….”
It’s because there was one family that came to mind.
Someone trying to test my abilities, and the existence of Beatrice mentioned after that.
If you don’t associate the two, that’s odd.
I got scared for some reason and turned my head away meaninglessly.
Quaang!!!
As a result, that choice might have saved my life once.
“…… Did you avoid it?”
I swallowed dry saliva.
It turned out to be an unintentional evasion, but I couldn’t bring myself to say that it was a coincidence.
Raise your gaze.
At some point, the girl who appeared in front of me without realizing it was, of course, someone I knew.
Beatrice.
She landed her kick on me once again.
It’s not even a wall knock this time, it’s a wooden knock.
I could feel an old tree behind me starting to sway helplessly.
How hard was the kick?
‘Are you really going to kill me?’
After swearing at me, I raised my hand while pretending to be as carefree as possible.
It was an intention to say hello.
“…… Nice to meet you, lady. We see each other quite often.”
“Unfortunately.”
Beatrice smiled at my late greeting.
Seeing that figure, I felt the tension that had faded a little start to rise again.
She seemed infinitely calm, if I had to say.
There was no major change in his expression, and he didn’t seem to have any emotions.
It’s just normal. It was a really laid-back look.
It was as if he was saying that there was no particular reason why he attacked me.
As if they were claiming that they just ambush an enemy (red team) they happened to encounter by chance.
But.
‘Oh, I’ll turn around.’
I could tell.
She didn’t bump into me by chance. In short, never.
In the first place, if it was just an accidental encounter, the quest window wouldn’t have added an additional word like ‘a person trying to test your abilities’.
Beatrice came to visit me on purpose.
Even if it was a surprise attack a little while ago, it must have been deliberate.
It was not difficult to see why.
Now that the situation is like this, it’s not like there aren’t any guesses.
‘Is it because of what happened yesterday?’
How could I not know?
She had been worried that it might have aroused some suspicion.
I’m not sure, but from that moment on, Beatrice probably began to judge whether my words were true or not.
Still, it probably wouldn’t have gone to the point of doubting everything I’ve said so far.
Isn’t it roughly about ‘this bastard seems to be hiding something important’?
You wouldn’t have thought that I’d be playing sleazy rock with you and the dragon in one set.
Involuntarily, I trembled.
That’s why I started to fear the aftermath.
From noble mtl dot com
As Beatrice narrowed her brows, I quickly spat out the words.
“Can you please put ‘this’ away for now? I am a little scared.”
This time, based on the previous mistake, I didn’t touch it, I just pointed at it with a glance.
In other words, Beatrice’s leg, which still has me half-caged.
Wriggling-
It was then that Beatrice’s eyebrows furrowed slightly in dissatisfaction.
Are you saying you don’t like pointing with your eyes anymore?
As I tried to think of that, she muttered in a slightly low voice.
“Isn’t it a bit odd to call her lady legs ‘this’?”
Ah, that’s it.
“I’m sorry.”
I quickly apologized.
I didn’t want to undermine my favorability rating with useless things.
“…… That’s Okay. It’s not like I’m going to bow down.”
Of course, it’s already a step too late.
Still, as if he understood what I was saying, Beatrice quickly removed his foot and meekly stepped back.
She glanced at me with a slight twist of her gaze.
“So, what are you going to do?”
He then asked me a question, but I reflexively blinked.
“Yes?”
It was a question about what that meant, but Beatrice started to loosen her wrists casually.
“This is how things turned out. Still, once you’re on the red team. I’m on the blue team. Can you see the name tag?”
“…… Ah.”
“That means there is no reason for us to have a good conversation.”
I kept my mouth shut.
Because I had nothing to refute.
I didn’t want to fight, but from her point of view, there was no reason to be considerate of me.
Ever since then, this team training has been one of the regular training courses at the academy, and not fighting against an enemy team will rather deduct points.
‘…… What should I do with this?’
But, nevertheless, I had to swallow the embarrassing silence inside.
The problem lies elsewhere.
Fighting Beatrice isn’t a problem.
I’m knocked out in a room, and that’s the end of it.
To be honest, there was no reason for me to dwell too much on the results of the academy, and I just had to accept the results as soon as I lost.
To put it bluntly, the reason I’m in trouble right now isn’t because of the Academy’s evaluation.
The contents written in the quest window hinted at one fact to me.
The person trying to test my ability is, of course, Beatrice.
And if I confront her in this situation and lose her in vain, her doubts that she has will be amplified beyond control.
‘Uncontrollably, la.’
I let out a short sigh and frowned at the same time.
Since such an extreme expression was used, it was easy to guess that Beatrice’s trust in me would hit rock bottom.
That shouldn’t be the case. Without her cooperation, it would not be possible to easily break through her ‘underground’, and it would be impossible to stay away from her, who is fundamentally one of the key protagonists of this world.
I finally let out a sigh.
There was no way.
“Good.”
At this moment, how can I escape the situation without colliding with Beatrice at all?
It was definitely non-existent.
“Let’s stick together, then.”
I spat out the words, and at that moment a satisfied smile spread across Beatrice’s lips.
She seems to have just warmed up her body, she reveals her composure by doing a short stretch.
“I like that it is clear. There are only two of us anyway, so let’s play with all our might without hiding anything.”
‘…… Oh, please.’
I wanted to express my intention of refusal right away, but I couldn’t bear it considering Beatrice’s perception of me as ‘an aide of the dragon who is hiding what she saw’.
“Whoa.”
I tried to make up my mind.
‘Let’s calm down, calm down.’
Anyway, a group fight between students is in progress, so she won’t be serious about this fight either.
…… So, I turned my thinking circuit in a positive direction as much as I could and held back tears inside.
Sereung-
I took out the standard sword provided by the academy from the scabbard I was holding.
Looking into my eyes reflected in the sun, I slowly sink into my thoughts.
It was a moderately well-forged sword. Considering that it is standardized equipment, it is definitely at a usable level.
Of course, the important thing now was not the condition of the weapon.
If the opponent is ‘that’ Beatrice anyway, even if this sword I’m holding is a higher tier item among 4-star weapons, there’s no answer.
The weapon isn’t the problem, it’s the user. To put it bluntly, I was too weak right now.
‘In the end, in order for Beatrice not to suspect me, I need to work hard to establish a plausible fight… ….’
I focused on Beatrice’s movements as much as possible.
The posture of holding the sword was very sloppy, but even so, the weapon only helped.
Anyway, the only thing I can do, the only thing I can believe in, is the supernatural power, ‘Thunderbolt’.
As a result of checking the performance of this ability in my spare time, I roughly estimate that I can emit a thunderbolt without ‘burning’ for only about 5 seconds.
I remember the first time I used thunder. That is, when Tsumei locked me in the severance space.
The total time I raised my abilities was 10 seconds.
I felt the burning pain after 5 seconds.
It’s a rough estimate, but it’s probably right. The time that I can safely use my superpowers is really fleeting.
I narrowed my eyes to hide any signs of agitation that might arise.
“Are you ready?”
It was about that time that Beatrice smiled and spoke to me.
She was still unconcerned, but there was no hint of tension or alertness on her part. Rather, her eyes, which were strangely twinkling, were very impressive.
I feel like saying that I’m really looking forward to what the fight will look like after this.
I lost my strength for no reason and burst out laughing.
Looking at Beatrice’s face was much more effective than taking a deep breath to calm the tension.
“Are you okay?”
Is that why? In the midst of an imminent situation, there was also time to lightly throw a joke.
At my words, Beatrice tilted her head.
“What is it?”
“You’re wearing a skirt, aren’t you? I think it would be better to refrain from extreme exercise.”
“Ah.”
Beatrice blinked briefly.
Then, she lowered her gaze slightly, but as if she was still concerned, the hem of her skirt was gently pushed down.
“…… Are you okay. I was wearing shorts.”
For saying that, a slight blush appeared on his cheeks, but he didn’t bother mentioning that part.
For me, it was a joke I threw in the hope that she would back down from this match, but it seems like there is no sign of it.
‘Jeep.’
With a brief smack, he aimed his sword at Beatrice.
I wish I could handle mana.
Then I would have at least raised my swordsmanship.
Blandly what is this?
“…… Oh right.”
As I thought of such a stupid thought, I heard a request that passed through my mind.
“Saint.”
“Why?”
“Just in case.”
Since the sword was subtly heavy, I continued talking while gently trembling my numb arm.
With a bitter smile.
“If you think I am about to burn to death during a fight, then treat me generously.”
“…… Yes?”
“I am very worried that I will die of shock.”
“What is that—.”
I couldn’t follow Beatrice’s words to the end.
Because before that, a ray of white light fell from the sky and colored the whole area.