Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Lapis Lazuli
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Puuuung!!
The chimera beast was caught in the explosion and sent flying.
"It's strong, but it's far from martial arts."
"What martial arts? As long as we take down the beasts, that's all that matters."
The final blow had been a small bomb thrown by Ellier.
"I'm going to sever the Evil God's abyss in my lifetime, no matter what it takes."
While Ellier and Ran conversed, Aren sheathed his sword back into its scabbard.
"Sir Aren, are you hurt anywhere?"
"I'm fine. Just a few scratches. And..."
Aren's gaze turned toward the door of the boss room.
"There's still the boss left."
It hadn't been as tough a fight as expected. Ellier and Ran were strong, and Aren had done his part.
Whenever a threatening attack came, Mine's healing had come just in time, preventing any major injuries.
Now, only the boss remained.
"Let's go in if you're ready."
As they opened the door and entered, the party members were all struck with awe at the sight of the ruined temple, unable to hold back their admiration.
But Aren was different.
In the center of the temple, crouched before the bonfire, was a knight-like figure clad in armor.
An indescribable light, unlike anything he had ever seen before, emanated from it.
'Is that... ashen?'
The color was so murky that it felt closer to darkness than light, but the sheer amount of it surpassed anyone he had ever witnessed.
"That must be the boss."
"Obviously. What else could it be?"
"Saintess. Get ready with healing..."
But amid them, Mine seemed to be in a panic, unable to string her words together properly.
"Ah... Ahh..."
"Saintess? What's wrong?"
"S-Sorry... It's... because of me... I..."
The moment Ran tried to check on Mine's condition, the armored knight creaked as it rose from its position.
"Ran, Aren! I'll go first!"
Right after Ellier pulled the pin from her bomb—
Kwang!!
The armored knight vanished from before the bonfire.
"What..."
In the next instant, an ashen trajectory flashed before Ellier's eyes.
Seokeok!
Ellier's body was cleaved diagonally.
A small voice, audible only to Ellier, leaked from the armored knight's helm.
"......"
"That's... what bullshit..."
Ellier couldn't even finish her words before vanishing like an illusion, along with the bomb in her hand.
[Group 6 Ellier Work eliminated]
"Ellier!"
When Aren turned his head, he saw the armored knight standing over Ellier, sword dropped to the ground.
It looked as if a forgotten noble knight was offering a prayer for her death.
"That was... a funeral rite? No way..."
Before Mine could finish speaking, the armored knight's second sword strike pierced her chest.
"......"
"......I see... It's fine..."
With those vague words, she collapsed, her expression surprisingly serene.
[Group 6 Mine Rose eliminated]
In the blink of an eye, two had fallen.
Yet the armored knight stood with its sword raised, head bowed as if in prayer.
"What the hell is this?!"
As Ran tried to rise, Aren's vision was suddenly dyed ashen.
'Too fast! I can't even track the movement...!'
The sword fell in a straight line toward his head.
'Damn it... No choice then...!'
But Aren had one last resort to block that strike.
The very last resort he absolutely did not want to use.
『You already know, don't you? That's the only way to turn this around.』
'No... not again...!'
However, Aren desperately ignored the seductive voice echoing in his mind.
At that moment, a voice emerged from the armored knight's helm.
"No need to fear. It's your power anyway."
'My power...?'
Kwaaang!!
With a ear-splitting whoosh, Aren's consciousness faded.
[Group 6 Aren Bright eliminated]
⁎⁎⁎
Aren possesses a special power called the Heavenly Apex God.
It's the power of the seven main gods opposing the Evil God, and it's the reason he became the final disciple of the Apex Sword God, as well as the greatest weapon he'll have to defeat the Evil God in the future.
However, in the story, Aren avoids using this power because it once rampaged and hurt his master and family.
Even at perfect timings to use it, he pulls the "No! I can't use this power!" crap countless times, creating frustrating scenes.
Just like now. If he'd used the Heavenly Apex God from the start, he wouldn't have been instantly killed.
Watching his self-sabotaging moves was so infuriating that I dropped the boss concept for a moment to give him advice.
Since he'll spam it endlessly later anyway, what's the harm in using it now?
I've decided to live my own way, but I can't deny that the protagonist needs to perform well to maximize the chances of defeating the Evil God.
But Aren didn't use the Heavenly Apex God in the end and got instantly killed.
'Was that meddling unnecessary?'
I looked around.
Ellier had low combat power to begin with, so I expected her to get instantly killed, and Mine lacked combat sense, so same for her.
But after stabbing Mine, I realized I'd forgotten she had a trauma trigger.
In the past, she entered the Evil God's dungeon with her guards, accidentally opened the boss room, and all the guards except her were massacred by the beasts.
The armor I'm wearing is from about ten years ago, the exact same design as what those guards wore.
She probably froze up seeing it, triggering her trauma.
"I'm sorry for not considering the Saintess."
"......I see... It's fine..."
It felt like repaying kindness with enmity, filling me with guilt.
'I should apologize to her separately later.'
After instantly killing the three, I turned my gaze to the last one, who wouldn't fall to an instant kill.
"Why do you pray after cutting someone down?"
I don't know that either.
Ran Pen.
In a world teeming with swordsmen, she's one of the rare fist fighter characters wielding gauntlets.
Among the early playable characters, her mob-clearing ability was unmatched.
"If you won't answer..."
Thud!
Ran Pen stomped, assuming a Stance.
The first form of the Fist King Five Forms. Arts used in that state have enormous range.
That's why I always deployed her for content with multiple mobs later on.
But wide range means lower firepower against single targets.
Just like with Eugene, she posed no threat.
'My real opponent is Cecilia anyway.'
A blue gem appeared above my head.
My turn.
After using Chronodive, I inscribed a weak point on Ran's side with Corner Slash.
[Weak!]
"Kuh!"
Normally, I could've followed up with Flash of Brilliance and Break to end the fight.
But—
"Heavenly Collapse Fist!"
Thud!!
The thrust fist sent me flying back in an instant, stopping me before the bonfire.
The armored part hit by the fist crumpled like a crushed can, smoke rising from the cracks.
"......"
When I raised my head, the blue gem above me blinked and vanished, soon replaced by a red gem over Ran's head.
'Ah, so that's how it works.'
Ran's Abyss Core, [Avenger], had a unique ability to counterattack immediately upon being hit.
Similar to my Just Guard, but it only activates after taking a hit.
I had a hunch, and sure enough.
When Ran got attacked on my turn, she counterattacked right away, consuming my remaining turn.
'If I get hit during my turn, the turn just flies away.'
Knowledge gained.
Ran's turn.
Without changing her stance, she thrust her fist, and a purple wave spread from her fingertips.
Shatter Wave. The top-tier mob-pull art that sucks in surrounding mobs and detonates them all at once.
Gathering about thirty beasts and detonating them gave an insane rush.
'But does a wave like that count as Just Guard?'
Pung!!
'...It does. But it's hard.'
Confirmed.
The purple wave struck dead-on where the Heavenly Collapse Fist had hit.
As the fist dug into my abdomen, parts of the crumpled armor burst off, sending agony through my gut.
But that was it.
Now that I'd grasped Avenger's mechanics, there was no reason to drag it out.
My turn.
"No way...!!"
I immediately drove in Flash of Brilliance to finish Ran.
"...Do you understand? The blade of Ruidel, Valhillar."
With the finishing line.
[Group 6 Ran Pen eliminated]
"Huu."
I let out ragged breaths as I lowered my sword.
Instant kills still tax the body, so my stamina was starting to bottom out.
Especially the back-to-back fights with Eugene and Ran. I even took a hit from her.
But I had no choice.
Me playing boss against the examinees wasn't just for the sake of roleplay.
This was all to personally experience the effects of the special cores.
Of course, I know all the cores' functions.
The issue is how they apply in turn-based combat, which I had no clue about.
For example, Eugene's Aegis originally didn't offset weak point damage, and Ran's Avenger didn't interrupt enemy turns with counters.
The End of Ages Academy doesn't have 'turns' to begin with.
I vaguely anticipated it from Rene's sudden awakening, but Aegis and Avenger also had special functions unique to me.
To draw them out fully, I had to become a threatening boss that forced the opponents to use their abilities.
'I didn't expect the other three to instant-kill out.'
Roll hard now to roll less later. That's the survival rule I've upheld since falling into this world.
If something unexpected happens later because I didn't investigate beforehand and I get killed, it'll be several times more frustrating than this pain.
In that sense, the upcoming showdown with Cecilia was crucial for me.
Cecilia's Abyss Core, [Lapis Lazuli], adds ice properties to attacks.
No matter how I thought about it, this ability seemed highly likely to apply in a seriously fucked way for me.
So I sat back down before the bonfire, waiting for Group 10, which she belonged to.
Whether good luck or bad, Groups 7, 8, and 9 failed to reach the boss room one after another.
Thanks to that, I could heal the wound from Ran and catch my breath.
Then finally, Group 10 with Cecilia arrived.
'It took at least two hours to get here... For Cecilia, let's say one hour.'
Just as I thought I'd loosen up in the meantime—
[Group 10 Brennon Thorwick eliminated]
[Group 10 Edella Linford eliminated]
[Group 10 Gareth Mordel eliminated]
"?
They just started, how are three already out?
Even basing it on a beast dungeon, they all had basic combat power. Getting shredded by mobs?
But that wasn't the end.
[Group 10 Corbit Hellan eliminated]
………………
…………
……
…
The elimination speed wasn't from beasts. Almost, no, 100%.
'Crazy bitch showed up.'
When the number surpassed thirty, the last name that twisted my face under the helmet into a shit-eating grimace appeared.
[Group 10 Cecilia Ren eliminated]
"What the fuck?"
No, what?
Cecilia was a top candidate for first place in this exam. Even if she lost to me, she'd have taken it.
And she got eliminated?
By who?
"Oh my. Isn't that Sir Haribal?"
At that moment, a familiar yet utterly unwelcome voice echoed from the door.
"Ahaha, just as I thought. The boss of this dungeon is Sir Haribal. I've gone and done something unforgivable to Cecil."
I didn't need to turn to know who it was.
'Variable.'
In the original story, Cecilia was a total bitch, tagged with "Icy Cold Princess."
But I'd never gotten that vibe from this world's Cecilia.
Pondering why, I sometimes thought: Maybe saving Senia was the first event that shattered the original story.
In the original, Senia would have died to that beastly bastard.
Then Cecilia would have lost her nanny and then her sister, spending long years in grief.
That hellish time's chill would have been enough to freeze her heart.
But I saved Senia.
And Cecilia bonded with me.
Resulting in a properly tsundere Cecilia instead of the icy princess.
So, what's left?
Senia Ren.
What the hell is she?
I know nothing about her. In the original, she was already dead before the game started.
"How did Lady Senia know I was Haribal?"
"Ahaha, I've seen you a lot with Cecil lately."
Senia said with a bright smile.
"So I've naturally memorized all of Sir Haribal's habits."
Is that what 'naturally' means? Her natural is fucked.
"The angle your right arm twitches at when you hear my voice—anyone could tell it was Sir Haribal."
"......You don't have to call me 'Sir.'"
"Shall I? Then I'll call you Haribal."
Of course, but just to check, I asked.
"Did you eliminate all the examinees in your group, Lady?"
"Yes."
"Lady Cecilia too?"
"Of course. No one in our group could match Cecil."
Senia answered so nonchalantly.
After cutting down Cecilia herself.
Her expression as she said it was identical to when she was chipping away at my apology earlier, sending chills down my spine.
"Why did you do that? You could've passed without going that far."
"Because I decided to."
Confirmed.
'Crazy bitch.'
I thought Senia was the nice lady and Cecilia the rotten one, but turns out this one's the psycho.
The Ren family clearly fucked up raising their kids.
"But running into Haribal here is such a delight."
"I'm quite flustered, though."
"Ahaha, truth is, I wanted to be in the same group as Haribal for this exam."
"Were you planning to eliminate me too?"
"More than that..."
Senia's clear eyes turned toward my chest.
"I want to recover Rene."
"And why is that?"
"Somehow... If I have Rene, Cecil will only look at me..."
In other words, she thinks holding Rene will make Cecilia challenge her to get it back.
But offing Cecilia herself for that seems backwards.
"I'm sorry, but I can't hand it over."
"No. I've decided to take Rene from you, Haribal."
"If decisions always came true, I'd have no more wishes."
Instead of replying, she drew her sword from her waist.
"Then no choice. I'll take down the boss my way and wrap up this exam."
A blade shimmering with blue light.
Cecilia's sword from the original, Azure Night.
'Was that originally Senia's?'
At that moment, ice crystals began blooming from beneath her feet.
Looks like Azure Night wasn't the only thing Senia had.
"Lapis Lazuli."
Fucking hell.