The Lion and the Illusionist
Chirp, chirp. Perched high in a tree, a bird sang with all its might, its melody echoing through the quiet forest. But as it sang in search of a mate, a dark shadow crept up from behind.
"Kee-hee-hee! Keek!"
The goblin that had snuck up on the bird snapped its neck like a dry twig. The tiny body went limp. Under the harsh laws of nature, the bird's breath was cut short before it could ever leave behind offspring.
Delighted by its rare successful hunt, the goblin cackled as it climbed down the tree. But the moment its feet touched the ground, its face froze.
Thump! Thump!
An ominous vibration rattled the soles of its feet. Its survival instincts screamed of danger, prompting the goblin to flee, but it was already too late.
Boom!
A flash of blue and black light tore through the spot where the goblin stood in the blink of an eye. The goblin vanished without leaving a trace, and the surrounding trees were utterly obliterated.
The aftermath was pure chaos, ravaged by a massive shockwave. The earth crumbled, and trees were snapped and blown to splinters. A massive trench, stretching dozens of meters, had been carved into the Monster Forest. And the battle between the two responsible for this devastation was still raging.
"Where do you think you're running, you bastard!"
Furious at her target's relentless evasion, Irelia Leonhart hurled her flail with all her might. A destructive force that made a cannon look like a toy hurtled after Kanteil.
With a slight tilt of his body, Kanteil dodged it. The flail, coated in Astral Force, flew far past him before detonating with a deafening roar, kicking up a mushroom cloud.
What kind of magic is that?
Magic (Physical). The full power of a 7th-stage warrior, a Master, was no different from a homing missile.
Sensing a presence behind him—perhaps she had attached an aura thread when she threw it—Kanteil ducked. The flail he had just dodged whipped back over his head and flew straight into Irelia's hand.
It returned as naturally as a loyal dog running to leap into its master's arms. No matter how he looked at it, that thing could hardly be called human.
"Good reflexes. I was hoping to crush your skull right then."
"..."
"Isn't it about time you started talking? We're far enough from the venue now. I'm the only one who'll hear you."
Irelia grinned as she spoke, her hand already raising the flail once more.
That's exactly why I'm not talking.
Irelia, the Disciplinary Committee President. One might think she secured her position solely through the monstrous strength that let her throw a flail with the force of a missile. ...Well, actually, that was true. But regardless, her capabilities extended far beyond mere brute force.
The Academy's Greatest Tracker.
This title didn't just apply to the student body. From students to the professors who taught them, absolutely no one could escape Irelia's tracking skills.
However, there was a way to bypass her tracking. It lay in the very ability that had made her the Disciplinary Committee President: the Lion's Roar.
Irelia's family, the Lionheart Clan, was known as one of the four great noble families of the continent. Regardless of gender, any blood relative of the Lionhearts could wield the monstrous strength of an ogre upon reaching adulthood, even without learning to channel mana.
However, this excessive strength, ill-suited for a human frame, took such a toll on their bodies that they could not survive without mana. While the Lionheart Clan was famous for producing numerous 7th-stage warriors, their most highly developed trait was actually their senses—specifically, their hearing.
It was a miraculous sense of hearing that allowed them to identify a person's true voice after hearing it just three times, no matter how heavily modulated it was. Having already spoken twice in his modulated voice, speaking just once more would expose his identity. If Kanteil had wanted to reveal himself, he wouldn't have bothered wearing a mask and modulating his voice with aura in the first place.
Anyway, I need to find a way out of here soon...
No matter how he looked at it, the obsessive woman before him showed no signs of letting him go. Her tenacity was such that she would probably chase him all the way to the underworld. Moreover, the flails she occasionally hurled were fast enough to keep pace with him even at full sprint. If he dodged them, she would close the distance using her Master-level physical capabilities. Kanteil scratched his head in frustration at the troublesome situation.
I also need to prepare for the subjugation battle.
Antares, the high-ranking demon of fire and corruption. Wherever he walked, flames overflowed and a horrific plague spread, bringing death to all living things. If mid-ranking demons were comparable to 5th or 6th-stage warriors, known as Experts, then the high-ranking demon Antares was equivalent to a 7th-stage Master. In other words, under normal circumstances, the protagonist's party wouldn't stand a chance even if they died and came back to life. They only managed to defeat him through a combination of counter-magic tools, protagonist buffs, and ganging up on him.
If even one of those factors is missing, not only the protagonist's party but also the freshmen and second-years will be completely wiped out.
Yet, Kanteil couldn't just handle it himself. It wasn't merely a matter of fame. The reward for defeating Antares was crucial—it was what would set Idrian Goldenroad on the path of a true protagonist.
But...
Would it kill you to pause for a second while I'm trying to think?!
Screaming inwardly, Kanteil deflected a flail aimed squarely at his skull.
Tremble...
Even though he had deflected it rather than taking a direct hit, the sheer force of the impact left his hands shaking. Fortunately, his superior speed allowed him to read the attack's trajectory and parry it, but a normal Master would have had their weapon shattered and suffered severe injuries from that single blow.
"Is scurrying away like a rat all you're good at?"
Irelia sneered. In the original game, she was dubbed the "Madwoman," but since she had only ever shown favor to Idrian, Kanteil hadn't truly understood why.
She really is a lunatic.
Even as she taunted him, how many combat simulations were running through her head right now? Just imagining it made him realize she was indeed out of her mind. He couldn't even begin to guess how many masks she wore behind that face.
The Lionheart Clan possessed a natural genius for combat. Having inherited the thickest concentration of the lion's blood, Irelia Leonhart was a born brawler and hunter. Even now, her faintly shifting aura moved in anticipation of every possible variable. To an outsider, it might look like she lacked control over her aura, but the absurd ability Kanteil had acquired upon transmigrating into this world laid her true intentions completely bare.
If I stay here any longer, I'll be pinned down until the rest of the Disciplinary Committee arrives.
Though their individual strength paled in comparison to their president, the Disciplinary Committee only admitted those whose combat prowess was recognized by the academy. Since they had to deal with the Occupation Club and other chaotic incidents, mediocre strength wouldn't cut it. If they joined the fray...
My identity will be exposed.
He might even be subdued.
Ah, what a pain.
Killing them would be easy enough, but severely injuring her would disrupt the Antares subjugation. After all, the key contributor to that battle wasn't Idrian, but Irelia. Even with Idrian decked out in all kinds of magic tools, defeating a 7th-stage demon was impossible on his own. Irelia was the one who made it possible. In other words, she was the true protagonist of the Antares subjugation episode.
I'll worry about the future later... For now, I need to get out of here.
It would be perfect if someone suddenly showed up right about now. As if answering Kanteil's desperate wish, a mischievous, boyish laugh echoed through the trees.
"Pwahahaha! What's this, Irelia? Are you playing with someone else besides me?"
Along with the mischievous laughter, a boy revealed himself from atop a tree. No matter how hard Kanteil focused his eyes, the boy's face remained invisible. It was heavily pixelated, as if the world itself had censored his very existence, making his form barely recognizable. Irelia's face turned ice-cold.
The sole reason she had graced the Freshman Welcoming Party with her presence. Kanteil, whom she had been fighting just a moment ago, no longer registered in her eyes.
Grit.
"If you grind your teeth like that, how are you going to chew meat later?"
"Club Leader!"
The mastermind behind this raid. The shadow ruler of the academy, an archmage comparable to the Student Council President, and the master of the Occupation Club. He had finally shown himself.
Boom!
Irelia's figure vanished, and a massive explosion erupted right in front of the Club Leader.
"Isn't this a bit of a rough welcome?"
Irelia possessed the ultimate tracking technique in the Lion's Roar, but she had met her match. The Club Leader was an archmage who possessed two rare attributes. One of them was 'Illusion.' It was an illusion that even Irelia, with her Lion's Roar, could not pierce. Shrouded in this illusion magic twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, the Club Leader could converse casually even with Irelia standing right before him.
"But we're a bit too close. I find this kind of attention rather burdensome."
With those words, the Club Leader sent Irelia flying. She crashed through the trees. A familiar attribute, one Kanteil had felt during the slime subjugation, tickled his sensory perception.
"My, what an impressive junior we have here. Trading blows with the 'Madwoman' herself."
His gaze shifted to Kanteil. The Club Leader watched him with intrigue. Kanteil froze at the casual use of the word "junior."
Since when did he know?
Had he read the expression behind the mask? The Club Leader offered a sly grin.
"I only came out to tease Irelia, but I ended up seeing something very interesting. I'll keep your secret. In exchange, let's grab a meal sometime. Of course, 'no' is not an option."
Was he threatening to expose Kanteil's identity to Irelia if he refused? Kanteil felt like he had gotten tangled up with a very unpleasant character. Well, as the master of the Occupation Club, his notoriety was second to none in the academy, so objectively speaking, he was a bad person. Subjectively, though, that might be a different story.
"Yes, it's best not to answer. There's nothing stupider than speaking in front of a Leonhart, after all."
"I knew you'd show up! Club Leader!"
Having returned in the blink of an eye, Irelia stood perfectly fine, raising her flail. Astral Force swirled around the weapon. Sensing that he could no longer afford to be careless, the Club Leader extended both hands to his sides.
The forest shook. Under the hands of the master of illusions, the woods lost their original form, reshaping into rounded, whimsical shapes like a child's drawing. Irelia's attention was fully locked onto the Club Leader.
Now.
Having bided his time, Kanteil quickly slipped away the moment the two superhumans clashed.
"Stop right there, you son of a...! Ugh!"
Irelia tried to pursue the fleeing Kanteil, but she was forced to deflect an attack launched by the Club Leader.
"Where are you looking? You're playing with me."
At his gesture, thousands of illusions rose into the sky. Dragons that looked like children's doodles opened their mouths in unison. The battle between the two did not end until nearly thirty percent of the Monster Forest lay in ruins.