Chapter 95: An Overwhelming Defense
The moment Philia and Evelyn met and rushed toward the Illusion Core.
Ludenberg Lavante had already cleared out all the low-level erosion beasts prowling around it and approached the mid-level erosion beast.
The mid-level erosion beast, with its massive body, seemed to detect his presence. It stopped wandering and stood motionless, staring at him intently.
But Ludenberg felt no particular thrill. He'd slain countless mid-level erosion beasts during the Solemnute raid incident. Facing one in a mere illusion now barely stirred him—he'd grown far too strong for that.
The instant he laid eyes on it, he gripped his sword and kicked off the ground.
Faster than an Innocence-rank user wrapped in Celioum's divine power. His speed was so blinding it made "swift" seem inadequate as he slashed at the erosion beast.
Slash!
His quick, ferocious strike collided with the beast's arm, severing it cleanly.
This is too easy. Not arrogance—just way too straightforward.
Ludenberg felt a twinge of disappointment at how trivial the evaluation seemed. Was this really how it was supposed to be?
No, it's not the evaluation that's off... it's me getting too strong. After all those unreal experiences, I've powered up beyond measure. The others are probably struggling hard.
Seeing no need to drag it out, Ludenberg stepped forward as the beast recoiled and tried to regenerate, thrusting his sword at it.
A near-lightning strike shot toward its chest.
His blade pierced the erosion beast's hide. Without even feeling resistance, it glided smoothly toward the heart...
And finally impaled it.
The mid-level erosion beast crumbled into black ash, scattering before Ludenberg's eyes.
And at that moment, Evelyn and the rest of Team 1 arrived nearby.
"Y-You already got it?"
"At least we weren't too late. Thank goodness..."
Watching the mid-level erosion beast vanish into pathetic ash, Evelyn and the students stared at Ludenberg like he was from another world.
They knew he'd already felled a high-level one, so a mid-level should be easy—but hearing about it and seeing it were worlds apart.
Evelyn herself could probably take down a mid-level with everything she had; her skills were top-tier, after all.
But watching Ludenberg dispatch it without so much as a ragged breath left even her stunned.
Ludenberg eyed the frantic arrivals with puzzlement.
"What's this? You guys."
"Defense phase is about to start, so we hurried over. Gotta rack up some points, right?"
"..."
Ludenberg said nothing, just stared at Evelyn.
"H-Hey, no attacking fellow students, you know that, right?"
Flustered under his gaze, Evelyn stammered.
"I know that much."
"Th-Then we can score some points?"
"Do what you want."
"Thanks!"
Evelyn and the students expressed their gratitude.
At least he still has that much decency. See? Not a total bad guy.
"Anyway, quit standing around. I'll smash the Illusion Core. No objections since I soloed the mid-level, right?"
"Go ahead. We don't qualify anyway."
Evelyn readily conceded ownership of the core to him.
"Good."
With that, Ludenberg swung at the Illusion Core within the rippling rift.
Unlike before, it shattered effortlessly.
Crack—!
The rift around the core expanded with the sound of shattering glass, soon engulfing the entire old school building.
The enveloping rift fragmented into countless starlight shards raining down on the building.
The shards seeped into the Sacred Law Formation, making it shimmer, until the glow spread across the whole structure.
The brilliantly shining formation gathered starlight around the original core site and shot it skyward.
The starlight bloomed again, blanketing the building as the surroundings began to shift—like time rewinding.
Buildings faded away, revealing a vast, desolate wasteland.
And at the former core's spot, a new Illusion Core began forming.
"Defense phase starting now?"
"Looks like it..."
As Evelyn replied to Ludenberg, illusory erosion beasts swarmed around the surviving Team 1 members.
This many? We'll score big.
The sheer number left Evelyn optimistic.
No idea how other teams are faring... but without Ludenberg, even if we'd claimed the base ourselves, we might've struggled in defense. Could've even gotten wiped out and failed. Who cares about occupation points? We can earn them now.
As Evelyn grinned, calculating her gains, Ludenberg murmured low.
"You said you wanted points earlier?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Better move fast then."
He bolted forward, pulverizing the illusory erosion beasts in his path.
"Hey? Wait up!"
His speed was unreal, forcing Evelyn and the students to desperately circle the core, slashing at beasts.
The battle's flow was much the same.
Beasts kept coming, but Ludenberg at the vanguard shredded most of them.
Slash!
More precisely, he reached and heart-slashed them before anyone else could act.
His pace was dazzlingly swift. Each swing shattered surrounding beasts' hearts into black ash.
What kind of monstrous skill was this? Even Innocence-rank Evelyn gawked before snapping to and tackling others.
Since Ludenberg wasn't four people, the students still snagged some occupation-phase points they'd missed.
After a while, light poured from the core, spawning mid-level erosion beasts around the base.
"Mid-levels."
"What now?"
The students conferred. Soloing one was still tricky at their level—Evelyn might manage, barely.
"Defend the core first! We can gang up on mid-levels, so don't panic!"
"Got it!"
Core defense comes first. Ludenberg's hogging points around him, but that's fine. We'll hold our ground and score what we can.
Evelyn parried a mid-level's strike with a fierce swing.
Her Solemnute raid experience helped gauge their strength, making them easier to counter—especially as illusions without real pressure.
She unleashed her full prowess. The beast faltered under her onslaught and retreated.
Realizing her attacks landed true, Evelyn ramped up her divine power.
Celioum's power lightened her body and sharpened her hearing.
She easily dodged its desperate tentacles and spines, pinpointing the heart.
"Found it."
She thrust her divine-power-clad sword. The spear-like stab pierced hide and heart.
After felling it, she scanned around—and went speechless.
"What the hell."
Ludenberg was one-shotting every mid-level in sight.
"Sigh. This eval's ruined. How'd I end up in his group?"
As she grumbled, Ludenberg pierced the last mid-level's heart. The core shattered on its own, restoring the old school building.
Team 1's evaluation was over.
The professors, watching the students' efforts, looked somewhat awkward.
"How do we even score this...?"
Professor Elun Habata grimaced, rubbing her temple, and the others agreed.
"Stick to the standard rubric. Standard."
"Yeah. Messing with criteria would just cause issues... Poor kids grouped with Ludenberg."
"Not entirely."
Hainkel Hereis pondered before speaking, drawing puzzled looks.
"Why not?"
"Greedy students always sabotage others intentionally."
"Ah."
"But Team 1 had no such drama—most survived to the end. Don't forget the scoring."
"Defense completion gives the highest points."
"Exactly. Beast kills aren't that high. Ludenberg's sweep is another story... but Team 1 members who finished defense will score decently. They got some kill points too."
"So..."
"Yes. Thanks to Ludenberg, they actually benefited. Evelyn Ansis missed out on more, sure—bad luck. But she got one mid-level at the end, so she'll score well."
The professors nodded at Hainkel's explanation.
"No need to overthink then, Professor Hainkel?"
"Right. Just grade honestly."
"Fair enough... But that kid Ludenberg keeps throwing us curveballs. Didn't even notice the core's barrier."
"He slaughtered everything before reaching it."
"Truly unprecedented. Anyway, Team 1's done—ugh, still so many left."
"Hang in there a bit longer, Professor Elun."
"Yeees."