Chapter 42
Chapter 42
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Placement Exam (3)
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"The arena...!"
"It's split open?!"
The spectator stands were in absolute pandemonium.
The arena lay in ruins.
It hadn't completely collapsed, but it was cracked and fissured like it had been hit by a massive earthquake.
The sight was more than enough to stun the 1st Year cadets in the stands.
But what had them going absolutely wild was something else.
"...How many signature spells does that Jeron guy even have?!"
"Reflection, slashing attacks, barriers, and now even a destructive spell that wrecked the arena? Man, it's just unfair."
"That last spell... I couldn't even see what he did."
"I saw it. Jeron spread his hand, and the arena just shattered!"
"Ugh, who didn't see that? We couldn't see the process in between!"
The new techniques Jeron had unveiled: [Shadow Barrier] and [Rending Slash].
In their eyes, Jeron was already a once-in-a-generation genius 1st Year with four signature spells.
In truth, [Rending Slash] was just a spell that unleashed dozens of [Mana Slashes] in rapid succession—but its speed was so blinding that it looked like an entirely different kind of magic.
But then.
"Huh? Victor looks totally fine, though?"
"Yeah? Did the attack miss?"
As a few cadets voiced their confusion, the instructor's voice boomed out, amplified by mana.
"Sparring match over! Winner: Cadet Jeron Airgia...! Reason: Destruction of Victor Friesel's life-preservation spell!"
The stands erupted in shock once more at the instructor's declaration.
"...No way, his life-preservation spell got destroyed?"
Life-preservation spell.
It was a safety measure cast on every cadet before the match began.
One might think, 'Doesn't that reduce the realism of combat?' But no, it didn't.
Because this was the bare minimum safeguard.
A one-time spell that activated only once, when a fatal attack threatened life itself.
Whether it was full-body burns or drenched in blood from head to toe, it protected only life—no more, no less.
That's why it almost never triggered.
Most cadets were ruled combat-ineffective long before it came to that.
But if it did activate, it absorbed all damage and shattered.
And that was exactly why Victor was unscathed.
It wasn't that Jeron's spell had missed.
On the contrary, it was too powerful.
It had been judged a 'life-threatening attack,' triggering the life-preservation spell.
In other words, if this had been a real battle...
Victor would already be dead.
"Hah...!"
Victor seemed to realize this too, collapsing to the ground in a heap.
His body was soaked in cold sweat, his legs completely giving out.
But no one thought it strange.
The terror of having one's life threatened.
It was palpable even from the stands.
Some cadets even felt chills crawling up their spines in sympathy.
And now... all eyes shifted from the kneeling Victor to elsewhere.
To the white-haired cadet standing tall and utterly unmoved.
To Jeron Airgia.
"Cadet Jeron, care to share your victory thoughts?"
The instructor serving as referee approached Jeron and cast a voice-amplification spell on him.
The spar's conclusion.
Time for the winner's statement.
Everyone held their breath, waiting to hear what this enigmatic genius would say.
A taunt at the loser?
A boast about his own strength?
Amid everyone's guesses, the first words from his mouth were.
"Ah."
A utterly flat interjection.
Jeron showed zero interest in his victory or the slumped Victor.
He merely glanced over the arena he'd smashed, muttering to himself.
"Uh oh. I accidentally broke it."
He scratched his head, looking genuinely annoyed and troubled.
"...Do I have to pay for this?"
?
Question marks floated over everyone's heads, instructor included.
***
'Phew, what a relief.'
I patted my chest.
The instructor had waved it off with, "Nah, don't worry. It happened during the spar."
'I was freaking out thinking they'd make me pay up when I'm already short on cash.'
The arena breaking wasn't something that happened in the game.
So even though I didn't show it, I'd been panicking inside.
'[Rending Slash]'s power was too much, and it shattered.'
I'd discovered an unexpected flaw with the skill-click system.
No control over the power.
Normal mages could adjust their spells' output...
But mine fired at fixed strength, so nothing I could do.
Still, no compensation fee? Total win.
I headed down from the arena in a good mood when I suddenly realized my massive screw-up.
'Oh crap! I forgot to drop the sloth line!'
The main quest condition: Win 'slothfully.'
The fight itself had gone slothfully perfect.
But I'd forgotten the sloth performance to seal the victory and worried about repair costs instead.
Argh, my old office drone instincts tripped me up!
'This is bad...'
Should I go back up and say it now?
No, that wouldn't be slothful at all.
Worst case, the quest could fail.
As I fretted.
Ding!
[You won slothfully in a real combat duel!]
[Main Quest: The Start of Rank (1/7)]
[An astonishingly slothful remark!]
[Sloth +200!]
'...Huh?'
Not only had the quest progressed, but I'd gotten a huge sloth boost.
I was baffled for a second, then it hit me.
'Oh... no way?'
Thinking back, what I'd said was peak sloth.
Zero interest in victory glory or showing off strength.
Worrying only about the hassle of broken property over the win itself.
Extreme efficiency: personal comfort over fight results.
That was sloth incarnate—prioritizing ease over outcomes!
'I accidentally nailed the sloth line?!'
Treating victory like a given made it work even better.
Anyway, score!
I grinned as I stepped down from the arena.
That's when.
"Jeron─!"
A silver-gray haired girl shot down from the stands like a bullet, skidding to a stop in front of me.
None other than Ciel.
"Jeron! That was so, so fun─!"
Gone was her usual drowsiness; her eyes sparkled as she spun circles around me.
Like a cat who'd found an irresistible new toy.
'...This reaction again?'
I thought. Those glittering eyes.
In the game, it only appeared when her affection skyrocketed—a rare reaction.
Like last time in [Magic Circle Comprehension] class, when I played Earth games with her.
'Huh? Was it that good?'
Sure, the finale [Rending Slash] was killer.
But Ciel? She could vaporize an arena without breaking a sweat if she wanted.
Her magic tower secret spells packed insane destructive power.
'Hmm. Didn't expect a spell like this to win over a genius like Ciel.'
I looked at her curiously.
Then Ciel grabbed my arm, barely containing her excitement, and yelled.
"That thing just now! Show me the black stuff again─! How'd you do it─?"
"The black stuff... you mean [Shadow Barrier]?"
"Yeah! Yeah! That─!"
Then it clicked. What caught her eye wasn't the flashy [Rending Slash] finisher.
It was the [Shadow Barrier] that blocked Victor's attack.
"That's black magic, right─?"
Her golden eyes bored into me.
"I tried copying it, but I couldn't get it that good─."
As expected of a genius, she'd instantly pegged [Shadow Barrier] as black magic.
'Right. Ciel had talent for black magic too.'
In the game, she'd mimic it after a few looks, just like other spells.
But.
My skill-cast spells were perfect black magic, boosted by the game system.
Even Ciel couldn't match that level.
Still, weird.
I'd used [Shadow Barrier] in front of her plenty while playing black magic department. She was curious then, sure, but not this hyped.
'Ah, maybe because a fellow mage like me used black magic?'
The key to Ciel's affection.
Stimulating her curiosity.
So genius, nothing much fazed her.
To hook her, show the unknown—what she didn't know or couldn't do.
A mage like her wielding superior black magic.
That was beyond her common sense—an utter unknown.
It never happened in the game since magic department protag couldn't use black magic skills.
Once again, game-turned-reality gave me a sweet new variable.
Ciel urged me on with shining eyes.
"Where'd you learn that─?"
"Hmm. Didn't really learn it anywhere."
"Then─?"
I pondered for a sec.
What to say here for max sloth and believability.
Ah. Perfect.
From now on, I'm...
"A hobby."
A guy who does black magic as a hobby.