66 – 30. This is something you didn’t know (1)
The atmosphere after Dias’ devastating defeat was unimaginable.
Even though it was meant to be a practice match to confirm their abilities, it was like an inter-unit conflict.
If it was a situation in which the 1st and 3rd platoons, traditional rivals, faced each other, then it was inevitable for the atmosphere to become heightened.
Even if they claimed to have the strongest hand they could play against each other, it was not an exaggeration to call it a fierce confrontation.
The soldiers of the 1st platoon had hoped to witness a good match, even if they couldn’t be certain of victory.
“What… Did I just see?”
“…I expected too much. What was that?”
What unfolded before their eyes was the epitome of all battles.
Of course, Ian Volkano had done nothing wrong. He had displayed immense strength and skill in combat. The problem was Dias.
No matter how skilled Ian was as a second-year top student, they didn’t expect him to be trailing by this much. They never imagined he wouldn’t be able to launch a proper attack even once…
“But still, didn’t he roll on the floor and do all sorts of things? Ian doesn’t seem to be anything special either.”
Of course, even during all this, there were those who desperately sought to belittle their opponent.
“You’re a magician. What’s with this guy?”
“The reason you don’t feel he’s anything special is because you don’t know anything about martial arts. If you knew a little, you would understand how superior Ian is.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes. Dias even executed cunning attacks that should never have been used. But Ian blocked them and won. It’s far more impressive.”
As if asserting that those words were not lies, Hailey, responsible for practical combat skills, could only gape.
At that moment, she couldn’t find any disdain towards Ian.
All that remained was spitting out words one by one about Dias’ despicable acts.
“This is troublesome.”
Ariel furrowed her brow as she absentmindedly listened to the people around her.
The situation was almost as bad as it could get. While there were times when Dias, their teammate, fluctuated in people’s opinions, the biggest problem was that despite wearing down their opponent and gaining momentum, he was admiring them.
“Just praising won’t do anything except lower our team morale. We need a turnaround. The battle Ian just showed us makes everything else feel insignificant.”
Although it wasn’t easy to surpass Ian’s popularity, which had attracted everyone’s attention recently, she wasn’t too worried. The next match would be just as incredible.
“Me and… Igor, right?”
The champion of the 1st platoon. Ian’s right-hand man in the 3rd platoon.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that their clash would guarantee excitement.
Ariel intended to bring victory from there.
One could argue if she was overly obsessed with their rivalry.
“It’s not an obsession. To me, it’s a matter of survival!”
For her, losing ground in the eyes of others was nothing short of the worst-case scenario for a warrior.
No matter what happens, she had to bring an overwhelming victory, with such urgent determination did she take to the field.
Thud!
“hahahahaha! Easy. Too easy! Once I land a punch, there’s no way you can move!”
“I…I lost?”
The result was defeat. Overwhelming defeat at that.
Even as she lay sprawled on the floor, Arielle couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.
“How…?”
She had not been lax. She had resolved to fight fiercely, so how could she have been careless?
She had truly gone into the battle wholeheartedly. But Igor was a more formidable opponent than she could have imagined.
Some might say that Arielle’s attacks were unavoidable, designed to deliver wide-ranging blows.
But at least she knew.
“I was outmatched.”
This fight was purely lost due to a difference in skill.
From the start, there had been an issue with keeping up with his moves.
Igor moved with a speed and skill that surpassed anything she had seen in their matches at Wargames, obliterating all the tactics she had planned.
“I tried to fight while maintaining distance to deliver long-range attacks.”
The insane speed and power bridged the gap in skill.
Like the zombies in Brocus. Igor pushed on through Arielle’s attacks without slowing, focusing on her face and abdomen with relentless strikes that she couldn’t defend against.
It was over in an instant. With each powerful punch, her consciousness faded.
When she opened her eyes, she saw herself sprawled on the ground and Igor, chuckling.
Crushed by defeat, Arielle was eventually forced to return to her place with gritted teeth.
“Arielle… You fought well, he was a strong opponent.”
“Yeah. He’s Igor after all. I heard he’s from the 2nd platoon. He was also called a monster in Veacon, I’ll do better next time.”
Her squad members tried to comfort her, but at least in Arielle’s eyes it was clear.
“Don’t pity me. I don’t want that!”
The smile in her eyes held a hidden mocking grin.
How she reveled in her defeat behind her smiling facade! There was no one to help her. Celia lost her enthusiasm and fell silent, Bianca hadn’t been seen since the Brocus incident. Reyna? She wasn’t anywhere to be found.
With a troubled heart, she headed to the bathroom, thinking that washing her face would help clear her mind.
She felt like she might go crazy if she didn’t do it to that extent.
“Haah…”
She bowed her head and walked on. It wasn’t until she realized she was nearly at the bathroom that Ariel lifted her head.
“Oh?”
She could see.
“You don’t have to worry. Those things you’re thinking about won’t happen.”
“…Senpai.”
It was the sight of her friend being embraced by Ian.
What on earth is happening? Why is Reina crying in Ian’s arms?
‘Why?’
They had been close. Not as close as Celia, who had been together for a long time, but since they were both first-year students, they often stuck together.
It was a relationship that couldn’t be overstated even though they were just best friends. They had become closer than anyone else while sharing their innermost thoughts.
‘This shouldn’t be happening… At least not you!’
Even if everyone else left, at least her. She thought she would protect her. When no one else acknowledged her worth and ignored her as a commoner, she reached out her hand.
‘And yet, you.’
Instead of repaying her. Can it be said that she can be embraced in Ian’s arms?
What made her angrier was that the expression on Reina’s face was something she had never seen before.
‘I gave my whole heart.’
Wasn’t she Reina?
At that moment, Ariel felt like she was losing her mind.
‘I don’t know anymore. Now.’
She had lost everything. She was isolated. It felt like she was trapped on a deserted island with nothing.
She felt her heart breaking more and more, and the tormenting voice of hallucination grew louder without respite.
Unable to bear it any longer, Ariel screamed in frustration.
“Tell me! What are you two doing!”
***
“Oh… I never expected this opportunity to come.”
Looking at Ariel’s contorted expression, Leviathan felt a surge of excitement.
It was so exhilarating. Even though he was looking at it with his own eyes, he couldn’t distinguish whether it was a dream or reality.
How long had she been waiting?
“The perfect opportunity to deal with both the hero and Ian has arrived!”
To Hero Ariel, she was an absolutely repulsive presence in the Demon Queen’s position.
If the moment to deal with her came, Hero Ariel was a being that must be dealt with using all her might, even if it meant sacrificing her life.
Of course, it was not an easy task, to say the least.
“I have failed so much and almost gave up…. But who would have known that such a moment would come?”
The hero is like a treasure of the Empire. What could that mean?
It meant that the wretched Empire would not leave her alone, no matter where she went.
Even if a battle were to occur, there were limits to how much she could unleash her mines since they had deployed forces ready to provide immediate support in various locations.
Therefore, giving up on assassinating her had been a long time coming. However, she couldn’t miss this opportunity.
“She will be isolated, that Ariel Volkanov.”
Abandoned by her comrades, she was left alone, and Leviathan didn’t miss that.
When the feeling of jealousy finally began to erode her body, she couldn’t help but let out a suppressed cheer.
“hehehe. The hero’s end is near.”
The situation of suppressing the arch-enemy of the demons. However, Leviathan’s joy was not because it was the end.
“If I acquire the body of this child… Ian Volkanov, too.”
The opportunity to deal with the worst enemy surpassing the hero had arrived.
Leviathan knew. What kind of existence Ian Volkanov was to the demons.
“A moment has come where I can handle a monster that seems unbeatable!”
In truth, as a Demon King, her greatest adversary was the hero, but Ian Volkanov was a presence beyond the standard.
Each party of heroes constituted formidable enemies, but the danger posed by Ian Volkanov was spoken of unanimously among all the Demon Kings, excluding Velfegor.
As he was an extraordinary monster, sometimes there were those who suggested that it would be more appropriate to deal with Ian rather than the hero first.
“Anger! Arrogance! What did they say? Did they tell me to wait? Did they say I couldn’t solve it? They were wrong! I was right!”
That was also why Leviathan covertly waited for this opportunity.
In her heart, she wanted to descend immediately and kill Ian, but as long as the other Demon Kings remained vigilant, launching a solo attack would be insane.
She truly endured, even though her whole body was itching. Could there be a better opportunity if she were to miss this one? Even when such thoughts crossed her mind, she suppressed her impatience.
Did the one she loved dearly consider her, who endured all that?
Now, in this moment, the unparalleled opportunity has arrived.
“The preparations are complete.”
Leviathan was a special existence.
Unlike other demon kings who faced restrictions when intervening in the intermediate realm, she had no constraints.
Of course, as a price for that, she had to be consumed by jealousy and could only use the abilities of the possessed target. But if the target was a warrior, what more could she ask for?
“The power that could sweep away an army just by swinging a sword… How much I longed for it.”
It felt like madness just watching from afar.
The burning jealousy surged, instilling hope of somehow obtaining it in the end.
Even this alone was astonishing. The advantages held by Ariel’s body were not yet over.
“Ian Volkano… Can you attack your own sibling?”
If he was renowned as a demon hunter with a reputation for being ruthless, would he be able to attack his own family?
Leviathan thought it was at least impossible.
And that was thanks to him hesitating. If she were to take control of Ian’s body as well…
Handling both Ian and Ariel at the same time would no longer be a dream.
At that moment, Leviathan didn’t hide her appearance.
From Noble mtl dot com
Whoosh!
A storm of magic surrounded Ariel.
When the magic raged like it could devour everything.
Ian could see it.
“She has arrived.”
“…¨
Ariel, whose dominance of spring was stolen, appeared before him with blurry eyes.
“An urgent quest has been activated!”
“The master of the abyss has descended! Stop her!”
“Success rewards: The Third Secret / Failure: Eternal Death”
It was the moment Leviathan arrived.
***
“Senior… What is happening right now?”
Rayna trembled at Ariel’s changed demeanor.
It wasn’t a strange reaction, because anyone could see that she was being consumed by magic. Moreover, if that guy was a warrior, it would be even harder to understand.
But Ian remained calm and released Rayna from his embrace.
Ian looked around, and the magic emanating from Ariel’s body was gradually forming a circle.
“Are you trying to confine the space…?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ll explain later, just get out of here for now. It’s dangerous if you stay any longer.”
Although the magic was spreading quickly, the space had not been completely confined yet.
It might be possible to escape even for a moment.
“Of course, there are still people inside the lecture hall… but”
Ian decided not to worry about them.
After all, Leviathan wasn’t aiming for those people, right?
“There’s no reason to attempt an invasion right now unless they were specifically after Ariel’s body and to confine everyone here.”
He was ready to give up his life in this place.
Otherwise, there would be no reason to attempt an invasion now.
“And there are faculty members inside.”
Most of the faculty left the lecture hall as soon as the opening ceremony completed, but those who were in charge of the contingency plan remained to protect everyone inside.
“Right now, the priority is to save Reina.”
Of course, if someone said they would help out here, it would be quite troublesome.
“…Okay, be careful, senior.”
Reina nodded silently and then moved away. She knew that she wouldn’t be of much help under these circumstances.
Only after watching Reina move away did Ian meet Ariel’s gaze.
“No, I can’t say that’s really Ariel.”
It wouldn’t be normal for someone to emit magical energy so intensely.
“Aether.”
As the invisible energy surrounded his arm, Leviathan’s mouth twitched slightly upward.
“Are they coming in now?”
That was what he was thinking just as he prepared to step forward.
Wahh!
“What’s going on?”
The magical energy raised on either side.
Without any warning, the attack came flying quickly, dangerously close without giving Roi Iris time to unfold.
“Could Ariel have been capable of such an attack?”
It was a mistake. He thought that he would rush in with a sword or use a surprise attack to launch a search operation. He never expected this kind of twist.
“This is hard to avoid… I have to endure it and use the instant regeneration.”
That was the moment when he thought it over and clenched his teeth.
Saaa!
“Hmm?”
Despite the expected enormous shock, the magic that hit his body had no effect.
The magic turned into smoke and flew into the air. There was no pain or injury.
“What? Was this not an attack?”
For a moment, he turned his head, thinking it was a trick to deceive the eyes, but…
“What? Why isn’t it working?”
Leviathan was also confused.
Unexpected situations were making Leviathan nervous as well.
What was he trying to do?
It was that moment when he was thinking.
Ding!
[Resisting mental domination with unwavering determination!]
It was the moment when an achievement item from the Brookes’ Domain revealed its true power.
“So that’s what it was….”
Finally, it seemed like all the problems were solved.
“He must have thought that I was flustered. He probably thought that I couldn’t move properly because I hesitated to confront Ariel.”
The situation had already shaken the opponent’s mentality. While others would have pushed with momentum to start the pressure, Leviathan went a step further.
“His goal was not just to end at Ariel. He was targeting me altogether.”
It might be an excessive desire, but wouldn’t it be a tremendous feat if he succeeded?
Considering her passionate personality, she must have thought that it was worth the high risk and high return.
Of course, as much as Ian made the situation, Leviathan didn’t hesitate to fight against Ariel….
Somehow, Leviathan was navigating the situation well.
However, he hadn’t expected the ace in the hole that Ian had prepared.
“Thanks to the effect of unwavering determination, I gain strong resistance to mental attacks for 24 hours!”
“The cooldown time is 72 hours!”
He looked at the green aura spreading through his body and smiled slightly.
‘As far as I know… Leviathan’s specialty is attacking the mind…’
If such an attack was blocked… there was nothing to fear anymore.