Chapter 40
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 40
Freya quenched her thirst with a long draught of water from her pack.
“Haaah.”
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and turned her gaze toward me.
“Roen. Thanks to you luring the golem, we’ve secured more than enough mana stones. I must express my gratitude for your foresight and wit.”
If she was truly that grateful, she could have at least accepted the water I offered her earlier. Way to make a guy feel awkward.
Regardless, I waved off her thanks with a shrug.
“No need for that. If I can’t contribute much in a fight, I have to rely on tricks like this. Besides, I only lured it because you were here to back me up. I wouldn’t have dreamed of it otherwise.”
As we were busy trading compliments over the golem’s carcass, Hakone called out to us.
“Over here! I found it!”
At some point, she had scurried over to the golem’s remains, pried open the engine housing containing the mana stone, and brought it over.
“Good work. Leave the extraction to me.”
Click.
I pulled a multi-tool from my pocket and set to work on the golem’s engine. My task was to dismantle the core and retrieve the mana stone that served as its heart.
[Structure Analysis]
The task was trivial thanks to Structure Analysis, a sub-skill of [Alchemy]. The engine’s internal schematics projected themselves before my eyes, highlighting the exact location of the mana stone.
As the casing fell away, a mana stone emitting a brilliant, pulsating blue light was revealed. As the power source for a massive automated golem, it was worth a staggering 150 points—the equivalent of 150 low-grade stones.
I carefully tucked it into my pocket, making sure it was well-hidden. Not that anyone would be foolish enough to try and rob a team that had Freya in it.
“Now we can afford to take things a bit easier.”
“Indeed,” Freya agreed. “It seems we no longer need to hunt other teams. If you had such a method available, why did you not suggest it sooner?”
I shrugged. “The risk was too high, so I kept it as a last resort. It was always meant to be my trump card.”
Fighting an automated golem was far more dangerous than ambushing a few students for their stones. In fact, Karon had even managed to get himself injured during the scrap—though he mostly had himself to blame for that.
With the situation settled, Hakone wagged her tail happily. “Anyway, great job, everyone~!”
“Hmm. I shall carry Sir Karon’s pack. Please focus on your recovery, as you are wounded.”
With a surplus of mana stones secured, the tension evaporated, and the mood turned light. It just goes to show that a little breathing room is the best medicine for morale.
“Alright, let’s get moving. We’ll have to spend the night in the mountains, so from here on, we should look for a campsite as well as monsters.”
The sun dips low early in the forest. It wouldn’t be long before nightfall, so finding a spot to pitch our tents was the priority.
“A sound plan.”
We began to trek through the woods in search of a clearing. It was then that it happened.
“Kyaaaak—!”
A sharp, blood-curdling scream echoed from deep within the forest.
“……”
I froze, staring in the direction of the sound. Freya and the others had heard it too; their expressions hardened instantly as they turned toward the source.
I slowly parted my lips. “...Sounds like someone’s in trouble. Shall we?”
I glanced at Freya, and she gave a sharp nod of agreement. Without another word, our team sprinted toward the scream.
*
The entrance to the Howling Mountains was a forest perpetually choked by thick fog.
“Hah… hah…”
Yulina Evalanche—Beatrice’s chief of staff and the head administrator of Eredor—gasped for air. She glared at the pack of several dozen Dire Wolves that had her team encircled.
Grrrr—.
The massive wolves were terrifying sights, their red eyes gleaming with hunger and strings of drool hanging from their maws.
‘This is bad. This is really bad...’
Dire Wolves were high-level monsters that shouldn't even be inhabiting the outskirts of the Howling Mountains, yet Yulina’s team had somehow stumbled right into a massive pack. They had been fighting and fleeing for nearly an hour.
“Huu, huuk…”
The relentless skirmishing had drained her teammates' stamina and mana. Yulina herself was reaching her breaking point. Her limbs trembled, her mana circuits were screaming from the strain of repeated casting, and her mana heart was running on empty. Even the protective barrier on her student ID was flickering, nearly depleted from blocking the wolves' lunges.
‘We have no strength left to fight, and nowhere left to run. And on top of that...’
She bit her dry lip until it bled and glanced to her side.
Grrrrrrr—.
To make matters worse, one of her teammates had stumbled out of their defensive formation. A Dire Wolf was already closing in on her.
“Heuk…”
The female student had collapsed to the ground, scrambling backward in terror as the wolf loomed over her. She was shaking so violently she couldn't even find the breath to cry out.
Yulina desperately wanted to rush to her aid, but if she broke the formation now, the rest of the team would be slaughtered instantly. No one could move.
In this moment of absolute crisis, Yulina clenched her fists.
‘...This is all my fault.’
But losing her composure would mean certain death. Yulina forced herself to remain calm and barked an order to her teammates.
“Everyone… don’t move. Stay still!”
Yulina began to squeeze the last drops of mana from her core, her mind flashing back to a few days ago.
*
A few days prior, Her Highness Beatrice had brought her a letter.
It contained information regarding the Dark Mana Stones, which Roen had promised in exchange for being allowed to observe the territory battle. At first, Yulina had read the letter with zero expectations, wondering what kind of useful intel a bastard like Roen Devalis could possibly provide.
However, her skepticism had been shattered almost immediately.
‘Yulina, what I’m seeing... this is accurate, isn't it?’
‘...’
Beatrice and Yulina had been unable to hide their shock as they compared Roen’s letter to the mountain of notes and photos pinned to their chalkboard.
Amazingly, there was a perfect correlation between the information Roen had provided and the intel Eredor’s intelligence department had gathered through weeks of grueling fieldwork. It wasn't just "useful"—it was exactly what Eredor needed. The predicted locations of the mana stones he’d provided would drastically accelerate their recovery efforts.
Based on that analysis, Beatrice had given Yulina a direct order.
‘The practical class this week. We have confirmed that your C-Group’s test site is the Howling Mountains. The potential locations of the Dark Mana Stones we predicted are also in that area.’
The Dark Mana Stones had already begun to spread. Intel suggested some had moved beyond the Union grounds and into the mountains. If the local wildlife came into contact with them, they could evolve into something far more dangerous.
‘Yulina, I’m entrusting this to you. I’ve been assigned to A-Group, so I cannot go. Even if you cannot recover the stones, please at least confirm their locations.’
*
Back in the present, Yulina forced her mana to circulate one last time.
“[Ice Bolt]!”
Kiiing—.
A jagged crystal of ice erupted from Yulina’s staff. It streaked through the air and pierced the skull of the Dire Wolf that was closing in on the fallen student.
Thwack—.
With its head shattered, the massive beast collapsed right on top of the girl.
“Kyaaaak!”
The student shrieked and scrambled away. In that split second of distraction, Jimmy, the team’s paladin, rushed forward with his shield raised and dragged her back into the circle.
“Heuk… Sob…”
“It’s alright. You’re safe now,” Jimmy whispered, trying to soothe her. But in truth, they were anything but safe.
Grrrrrrr!
Enraged by the death of another pack mate, the Dire Wolves let out a collective snarl, their killing intent thickening the air. Facing that overwhelming pressure, Yulina and her teammates felt the blood drain from their faces.
“Shit. We’re completely screwed.”
Gaurel, a warrior from Ishtal, spat a curse as he watched the circle tighten. It was a crude assessment, but an accurate one. Gaurel had fought like a demon, but his stamina was spent. Jimmy’s shield arm was shaking visibly. Yulina was empty, and the other two students were non-combatants who specialized in theory.
There was no way out.
‘But still, this is too strange...’
Yulina bit her lip. She knew the route she’d chosen overlapped with the predicted locations of the Dark Mana Stones. It was the most efficient path to fulfill Beatrice’s mission. It was logical that they might encounter monsters corrupted by the stones.
These Dire Wolves were likely normal wolves that had mutated after contact with the dark energy. But even so, this many of them in one place was abnormal. High-level monsters like these shouldn't be this close to Union. Furthermore, the automated golems that were supposed to be patrolling for student safety were nowhere to be found, and there had been no response from the faculty.
‘Something is very, very wrong.’
Jimmy glanced at Yulina over the rim of his shield. “What’s the plan, Miss Yulina?”
Since no help was coming from the golems or the professors, they couldn't afford to wait any longer. Yulina made her choice.
“We have no other choice.”
Rather than waiting for the wolves to tear them apart, it was better to gamble everything on opening an escape route.
‘I... I have to be the one to do it.’
Yulina looked at the four students trembling behind her. They had been dragged into this because of her secret mission. She didn't consider herself a saint, but she had enough of a conscience to know she couldn't let them all die here.
“I’ll open a path,” Yulina said, her voice firm. “You two, grab the girls and run the moment I give the signal.”
“Hey! What about you? Your ID barrier is almost gone!” Gaurel shouted.
Yulina forced a confident smile. “I-I have a high-tier defensive artifact that Lady Beatrice gave me. I can retreat safely on my own, so don’t worry about me.”
“Oh, really? Well... that’s a relief.”
...It was a lie. Her Highness did give her precious artifacts every year for her birthday, but Yulina considered them too valuable to risk losing, so she kept them locked away at home. If she’d known she’d end up in this mess, she would have worn every single one of them.
“Alright, we’re counting on you. Hey, get on my back!”
“You, come here!”
Jimmy and Gaurel each hoisted a girl onto their backs. Yulina gathered the absolute last dregs of her mana.
“Hooo.”
The spell she chose was [Ice Field]. It was the best option to bind the wolves' feet and buy time, and it was the only area-of-effect spell she could still manage.
‘This is it. My last shot.’
She felt the mana leaving her body like blood draining from her veins. Her vision blurred, and her limbs felt like lead. She focused every ounce of her willpower on the calculations, desperate not to waste this final strike.
Just as the mana began to coalesce at the tip of her staff—
Tat!
A Dire Wolf, sensing the surge of energy, lunged at Yulina.
Grrrng!
In an instant, the beast was airborne, flying straight for her.
“!”
Time seemed to slow to a crawl.
‘N-No...’
She had underestimated their instincts. Startled by the sudden attack, her concentration shattered, and the spell fizzled into nothingness.
‘I’m going to die.’
The wolf’s maw gaped open, its yellowed fangs inches from her throat. She knew those teeth would tear through her neck like paper.
‘Is this... the end?’
In the face of death, her mind raced through her regrets. She hadn't achieved her goals. She hadn't repaid her debt to Her Highness. She’d never even been in a relationship, and now she was going to die in the dirt as monster food.
‘...Dammit.’
It’s all over.
Yulina squeezed her eyes shut and braced for the impact.
Flash—!
“!”
Suddenly, a blinding light erupted in front of her. A translucent, armor-shaped barrier materialized out of thin air, blocking the wolf’s path.
Thud!
The Dire Wolf slammed into the transparent shield with a sickening crunch.
Whimper!
The beast’s fangs scraped uselessly against the barrier. Then—
Whoosh—.
A blur of white passed before Yulina’s eyes. A silver flash followed, and the wolf’s head was severed in a single, clean stroke.
Sh-sh-shk!
One, two, three.
The Dire Wolves were being slaughtered. A pure white flash of light danced through the pack, and the monsters fell like wheat before a scythe.
Yulina’s eyes went wide. A girl had appeared out of nowhere, standing amidst the carnage she had created. She was a ray of light in the darkness—a savior in their most desperate hour.
After finishing off the immediate threats, the girl flicked the blood from her blade and looked back at Yulina.
“Are you alright, Miss Yulina?”
It was Freya Gunhild.
And then, from a rocky ledge just behind her, a familiar, unwelcome face appeared.
‘...Roen Devalis.’
The bastard looked down at her with an unreadable expression and spoke.
“You’re not dead. Good.”