178 – Villain
“Ross, behind… !”
I didn’t even look at Ellie’s cry and swung my pickaxe and hit the head of the guy who was approaching from behind.
Puck-! With a sound, the guy whose head exploded turns into a cube. As expected, the temple was inhabited by barnacle humans.
If you take out the Spear of Destruction from the Space Warehouse and use space magic, it will be easy to blow off their heads no matter how many there are.
However, in a situation where the only space wizard named Lily appeared, neither space storage nor space magic could be used. Just like in the duel, I had to hide my spatial magic.
After taking one long deep breath, Ellie came over and picked up a cube that had fallen to the floor while swinging her pickaxe at the three barnacles approaching in front of her.
Put the pickaxe into one of the guys’ heads, and use the center of gravity to hit the guys on the head who were approaching from the right.
I swung my pickaxe like crazy to clean up the area, then sat down on the floor to take a break. Ellie, meanwhile, wandered around and picked up her cubes, stuffing her pockets full.
“If I keep collecting these, will you change them into points?”
Ellie came to her side and muttered, placing one of her cubes in the palm of her hand. He seems to have developed a curiosity about the continuously falling cube, even though he didn’t know how to use it yet.
“Would you like to exchange points for something else?”
With a sneaky hint, Ellie nodded her head and put her cube in her pocket. The skirt pockets are full, so it seems that you can get a staff if you look for an exchange.
“Okay, now let’s look around.”
I got up and walked around the temple. Like a dangerous area, the number of boxes was quite large. I was able to get a lot of harvest by opening almost 10 boxes. Ellie got a robe enchanted for magic, a bracelet-type artifact with magic written on it, and a weight reduction bag.
I got out of the pickaxe and got a sharp dagger and some leather armor that was easy to move. The rest were useless things like flares and arrows, so I didn’t bother to pick them up. Bread and drink Ellie put in her bag.
Perhaps it was relayed in real time, so there was no need to change clothes. Just by touching it, her magic reversed the school uniform she was wearing.
I said to Ellie, who was eating a small piece of bread.
“Let’s look around. It’s a temple, so there might be something unusual.”
Ellie nodded her head without answering and followed me. There must be an exchange center around this point. With that thought in mind, she looked around and finally found an exchange.
A raccoon dog that made a house in a hollow tree was waving at us. It looks cute with a leaf on its head.
I stayed alert in case someone dug a trap and was hiding nearby. As we cautiously approached with a dagger, the raccoon placed a tray in front of us with a very businesslike attitude.
“… What?”
Ellie glared at the raccoon as if having a snowball fight. Could this be me? He pointed to the tray and said in a voice that seemed to be
“Isn’t it to raise the cube? It’s like a kind of exchange.”
Many people will be watching what I guess. They might say that I am an intelligent character when they see me answering the correct answer. Are you watching Luna too? It’s late, but even now, I’ll have to lower my tone a bit.
After staring at her raccoon for a moment, Ellie tucked her hair behind her ear and smiled beautifully.
“Unexpectedly, Ross is very observant. He used to just play dumb.”
The audience doesn’t know what kind of relationship we have. The basic specs of the contestants are disclosed, but their private lives, such as who they are friends with, are not written. Ellie’s words suggest that we have known each other for a long time.
You dare to say that? I thought, but it’s not to the point of being tackled.
Ellie moved the white cube from her robe pocket and placed it on her tray. The raccoon, who had been watching it, shook the tray around to weigh it, then dumped the cube into the tree and opened the book to us.
It was a page with weapons, armor, and artifacts drawn on it. It’s about choosing one of these. I said without hesitation.
“Let’s choose a cane.”
I said that because it was a promise to prioritize the wand from the beginning, but for some reason, Ellie showed appreciation as if I had made a concession.
“Are you conceding for me? After all, Ross is nice.”
It seems strange to ask why he suddenly gave me a compliment. Shrugging her shoulders, I handed Ellie her choice. After examining the different types of wands, Ellie finally chose the one she liked.
After confirming Ellie’s choice, the raccoon disappeared into the tree. As if expressing that he was looking for something, all sorts of things bounced up and down, and then the raccoon appeared again.
Swish- Ellie grabbed the cane that she had thrown insincerely. Ellie waved her wand in the air to make a booming sound, and smiled contentedly.
“It’s a pretty good cane.”
Saying that, Ellie used her magic as her practice. The surrounding lights twinkle, highlighting Ellie’s beauty even more.
Ellie has obsidian-like eyes and a soft smile. The male spectators watching this scene must have opened their mouths stupidly as if they were fascinated.
Of course I’m fine. Thanks to the indomitable courage activated before the start, there is no shaking at all.
I checked the map at the voice I heard from the sky. It started to get dark outside the ring before I knew it.
“Wouldn’t it be better to move towards the center?”
When Ellie is asked, she shrugs her shoulders as if she doesn’t mind. To get the next target, the spear, you need to check the farming area as you move.
After determining the route, I checked the map with Ellie and moved to the next farming location.
***
It was midway through the game that Calvin, a seasoned commentator, felt strange.
《Ah, the players of Elasium and Arcadia met. There is only one bridge to travel. Will the first battle take place here?”
Unlike Caster’s fuss, for some reason, the players checked each other and passed the bridge in order without a fight.
Forty minutes into the game.
Except for the battle with Naga’s minions, there was no combat between the participants. We even met face-to-face a few times, but everyone just looked at each other, and no one came forward.
Those who didn’t know why yawned at the boring ensuing match, but those who knew they had formed an alliance watched with interest.
“Couldn’t the first graders have planned the wrong strategy? If it continues like this, it will be difficult to withstand the pincer attack. We have to drop at least one team before the ring completely shrinks.”
As Edward watched the game in the waiting room and sighed anxiously, Cassius spoke as if agreeing with that opinion.
“Maybe we decided to farm as much as possible in the first match? The importance is greater for the next game, the Labyrinth.”
Compared to the Labyrinth where you can obtain artifacts used in team battles, Extermination is a game that can be discarded, albeit regrettably. But that’s a story when you didn’t know that the academy had formed an alliance.
If your opponent has formed an alliance, it is enough to scatter them before they unite. As Edward saw in practice, Ross and Ellie were good enough.
But now, even when I met the other person, I pretended not to know, and it was frustrating. What the hell are you thinking?
As Edward nervously bit his nails, Roel placed a hand on his shoulder with a soft smile.
“Don’t worry. Because my brother is smart. They must be secretly planning something.”
Edward looked over her shoulder at Roel. Edward sighed and whispered softly so that no one else could hear him.
“Did I tell you anything else?”
I looked at it with expectant eyes, but the answer I heard was futile.
“No. I just trust my brother. Ross likes to surprise her.”
At Roel’s wry smile, Edward licked his lips and scratched his eyebrows. This brother has no clue.
Roel said that he only informed her academy’s union. But for some reason, his younger brother, Ross, also knew about the alliance. He later asked Roel, he just shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, saying he didn’t expect his brother to know.
It’s a brotherly relationship that I don’t know if they’re close or not. Even Ellie, who shows a subtle interest in Ross, is Roel’s girlfriend. Even if it is twisted, it is a tightly twisted relationship.
I didn’t step out for fear of hurting my head, but it hurts to say that their relationship is complicated.
This is a dangerous situation.
I.N asked Calvin’s words as if he was curious.
《Ah, our commentator Calvin has figured out something. Why is transcendence dangerous?”
In response to Caster’s question to explain the situation gently, Calvin said in a serious voice.
《Now, the last ring is reduced. In the end, the players come together in one place. In that situation, it’s only natural to attack the most dangerous opponents, the Transcendence players, first. It’s a kind of instinctive behavior to get rid of the most dangerous thing.”
It is one of the methods that other academies have plenty to choose from. If it’s two, it’s scary, but if it’s six, the words will be different!”
The atmosphere of the crowd, which had been boringly watching the caster’s fuss, changed to anticipation. The anticipation is whether the champion will turn into the prey or vice versa.
“It’s okay, is it okay… ?”
As Luna muttered anxiously, Arya shouted.
“It’s okay, it’s okay! If it was Ross, I’d bust everyone’s head out?”
Aria asked if she could not be sure, looking at Kane.
“Right?”
“Huh? Well…. It seems to be right that it is a disadvantageous situation-“
“You negative bastard! In times like this, even if you’re wrong, you’re right!”
While Arya shook Kane’s collar, Lakar reassured Luna.
“Don’t worry. Because the manager must have a plan.”
“Ehh….”
***
Fortunately, Ellie followed me well without saying anything. Even if I met an opponent by chance, I didn’t want to fight, I just left the choice to fight by my side or not.
I continued sending opponents as planned, and finally the last ring was reduced. Moving on to the bones of a huge monster, we met the six people who were waiting for us.
Thanks to farming hard without a fight, most of the equipment was in good condition. After catching the ugly mermaids that appeared after the barnacle humans and collecting the red cubes, Ellie upgraded her wand.
I was lucky enough to get a spear, my main weapon. A dagger was tucked into his side as a secondary weapon, and a spear with a well-balanced center of gravity was slung over his shoulder.
Ugh ugh-
Right behind us, the ring shrunk and vibrated. When you go out of the ring, you are constantly shocked as if someone is hitting you. It was a device aimed at a shock-absorbing artifact that was as close to life as a participant.
“It took a lot of work to get here.”
Someone came forward as a representative. Orange curly hair. This is Eunice, a girl with lovely freckles. It seems that he is already trusted by other contestants. Is it high intimacy, or is it simply a good handling of people? Whatever it is, as a manager, I want to learn.
The board was laid out roughly as I thought. Where should I listen to Eunice’s declaration of war?
As I was thinking about that, Ellie, who was next to me, suddenly opened her mouth.
“You are ugly.”
Suddenly… ?
Ellie, eyes like obsidian narrowed like those of a cat, glared at Eunice.
Eunice was also glaring at me with a bewildered expression, perhaps taken aback by the attack without context. No, why are you staring at me… ? It’s a bit unfair. I’ve never had a thought come out of my mouth.
“Is Transcendence Academy so rude and arrogant?”
Eunice twisted one corner of her mouth.
“As if it was natural.”
Ellie pressed her mouth shut as if she had nothing more to say.
“It is your arrogance and failure to not fight anyone until the end. We joined hands to drop the most dangerous competitor first.”
The story of the joint championship will still be a secret. Just like the twist at the end! Because it’s fun to let go.
“I knew I was still immature because I was a freshman, but I didn’t expect it to be this much. They say it’s the best on the continent, Foot.”
Seeing Eunice twisting the corner of her mouth and beckoning me to prepare for battle, I thought I could open my mouth now.
The situation where all participants finally gathered. I waited for this moment when all eyes of the audience were focused.
Eunis is a bookmaker who has read the market situation I haven’t seen, but he is still immature. The owner of this board was already me.
A small space where you can’t escape, gathered prey. It is the best environment for me who is not familiar with the intangible yet.
“… How many worms can gather together to hold a person’s feet?”
Muttering as if it’s annoying, spitting out words.
But no one didn’t hear me. I brushed back my bangs with an arrogant expression rather proudly at Eunice and the other people who were glaring at me with a gaze full of anger.
“That’s funny. It’s like the worms don’t know the subject, and they’re huddled together. It’s as if anything happens when we get together.”
I heard a small laugh from Ellie next to me. Perhaps Ellie, who knows me well, notices that I am acting.
“Why can you all come together like frightened dogs and stick their teeth at us?”
I asked Eunice, lowering the spear slung over my shoulder. Eunice slightly frowned and gave a relaxed smile.
“Your arrogance for ignoring us. If you’ve thought about it a little, you should’ve noticed that things took a strange turn….”
I cut Eunice off as if I was wrong. He tapped his temple with his finger as if to think about it.
“No, it’s not arrogance. It’s out of pity.”
I spoke in a firm voice so that the people watching the game could clearly understand.
“I feel sorry for scumbags like you, struggling to do anything. In the end, I suddenly felt sympathy for the desperate gestures of the bugs that failed.”
I am well aware of the aftermath of my remarks. The atmosphere will not heat up, but will boil as if on the verge of an explosion. The games of the seniors behind me will be harder than before because of me. It’s because it naturally gives them a reason to suffer from a pincer attack.
“It’s because the seniors who participated in the triathlon in the past did not trample on you properly out of pity. Compassion dared to look up and see us.”
I deliberately showed an appetizing gap. Eunice will never miss a chance.
“I think everyone now knows how Transcendence Academy thinks of other academies. How can I at least bow as a thank you?”
“No.”
At Eunice’s words, I amplified the magic power in my body. The time of the moment is getting longer. The world feels slow, as if the leaves that fell in the wind stopped in mid-air. At last the breath of the beast escapes my mouth.
A speed that relay magic cannot catch up with. The shock absorbing artifact of the man with the greatsword standing next to Eunice turned red and fell off. The body disappeared like smoke as if it were an illusion. It will drop out
Eunice, who belatedly comprehended the situation, saw me approaching her in an instant and drew in a gasp-like breath, while the participants reflexively brandished their weapons at me, I looked at Eunice and said.
“Bark.”
A villain’s smile caught on my lips.
“It’s better if you cry.”
Lets go!
Ross let’s goooo!