Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Placement Exam (8)
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Yustina wore an expression like she had no idea what was going on.
It was understandable.
I'd acted like I was preparing some massive attack, only to suddenly declare surrender.
But.
'This is where the template ends.'
In truth, everything had gone exactly according to my plan.
'Block the Saintess's ultimate move effortlessly, then surrender.'
That was the scenario I'd devised from the start.
The Saintess had a variety of attacks.
Among them, the most devastating was [Heavenly Spear], unleashed after activating her ultimate [Mode: Valkyrie].
So, I'd anticipated that if I proposed a bet to settle things with our strongest attacks, she would definitely use that skill.
'[Heavenly Spear] is a skill that deals physical damage.'
And my [Dark Shadow Barrier] was a physical defense.
Of course, the plain [Dark Shadow Barrier] alone would have been pierced.
But amplifying it with [Unstable Amplification] changed everything.
'[Dark Shadow Barrier Amplification: Eclipse].'
It produced a skill boasting near-invincibility for an instant.
Considering the Saintess's current skill damage, my mana reserves, and various other factors, I—a veteran—had calculated that I could block her strike.
'...Though I got pretty scared there for a second.'
That was just theory, though.
Facing her ultimate move in reality felt entirely different.
Even in the game, its effects were dazzling, but in real life, my vision went pure white... I seriously thought I was done for!
Anyway.
I'd blocked the attack perfectly, and it was my turn to strike back, so why surrender out of nowhere?
Simple.
'I have nothing left.'
I'd used [Unstable Amplification] to create [Eclipse], so [Savage Slash] was on cooldown.
That left [Magic Blade Strike] as my only attack skill.
If even [Savage Slash] couldn't pierce the Saintess's defenses, a basic slash sure as hell wouldn't.
Like I said before, I'm not winning anyway.
'So, at least salvage some image.'
Failing to finish her off after blocking her ultimate would tank my reputation.
But what if I didn't show my attack at all?
Humans are creatures of imagination.
They'd fill in the blanks with all sorts of assumptions and guesses.
And that's exactly what happened.
Murmur, murmur!
The spectator stands buzzed with voices and gazes full of doubt and confusion.
Even the instructor eyed me curiously, asking the reason for my surrender.
"Surrender...? Cadet Jeron, what is the reason for this?"
Time for the final flourish to fuel their imaginations.
"Ahaha..."
I scratched the back of my head with an awkward laugh.
"The Saintess is stronger than I thought, so winning would be a bit of a hassle."
"...A hassle?"
"Yeah. It's hard to control my power when I get 'serious.'"
I said it lightly, as if stating the obvious.
"After all, killing the Saintess would be a problem, right?"
...
[An unbelievably slothful statement!!]
[Sloth +300!]
The system itself lagged a beat reacting to my deranged words.
***
Jeron's bombshell remark sent the spectator stands into an uproar.
'...What?'
'...Did I just hear that right?'
The situation was straightforward.
Saintess Yustina had unleashed an attack that looked brutally powerful.
Jeron Airgia had blocked it effortlessly.
Then, he suddenly surrendered.
Up to that point, it was somewhat comprehensible.
'Oh, he blocked the Saintess's attack but used up all his mana, so he surrendered?'
A few cadets thought that.
But.
"It's hard to control my power when I get 'serious.'"
"After all, killing the Saintess would be a problem, right?"
Jeron's final words turned their minds blank.
The spectator stands descended into chaos.
"...Is he insane? What the hell did that guy just say!"
"He could kill the Saintess if he got serious? Him?"
"Even through life-protection spells?"
"Come on, there's a limit to bluffing!"
Students who took his words as arrogance and blasphemy shouted in fury.
On the other hand.
"Jeron might actually mean it..."
"Yeah, he blocked the Saintess's attack like it was nothing."
"If that's real, just how strong is he...?"
Those recalling Jeron's past feats and overwhelming prowess couldn't dismiss it as mere bluffing and felt chills.
At the center of the chaos, Yustina stared blankly at Jeron.
'...That's not a bluff.'
Others might not know, but she could tell.
His words weren't mere bravado or arrogance.
She knew better than anyone how powerful [Heavenly Spear]—practically her ultimate—was.
Even top-tier cadets would be combat-ineffective from a mere graze.
She'd even worried he might get hurt too badly as she threw it.
Yet he'd blocked it without a hitch.
And even now, he showed no surprise or fatigue.
Could Jeron really kill her if he wanted?
She didn't know.
But one thing was certain.
Whatever the case, he'd forfeited his attack to avoid hurting her—intentionally losing.
Though he'd called it a hassle....
Thump.
Realizing that, Yustina's heart pounded hard once.
She'd braced for pain and fear, only to find unexpected consideration at the end.
That shook her to the core.
In psychology, it's called the "suspension bridge effect."
The thrill of danger and the relief when it's over get mistaken for affection toward the other person.
Yustina didn't know about it.
That's why.
'I thought he was scary, but maybe he's actually kind...?'
She couldn't tear her eyes from Jeron's retreating figure as he left the arena calmly.
***
[Main Quest: The Start of Ranks (7/7)]
[Result: 6 Wins, 1 Loss]
[Rewards being calculated....]
'No quest rewards yet.'
I checked the quest window as I left the arena.
Ended at 6 wins, 1 loss. Not a perfect record, but not bad.
The rankings would probably drop next Monday, along with the quest results and rewards.
Wonder where I'll rank. One loss probably rules out S-Rank, but I'd like something high.
I did surrender, but I fought—not a forfeit—and blocked the Saintess's attack, so I deserved good points.
'Man, Yustina's seriously strong. Feeling it anew.'
Clashing with her directly confirmed it.
A real head-on fight without the weird bet? I'd have been crushed.
'Need to raise her affinity fast and make her an ally.'
How easy would academy life be with that powerhouse on my side?
But raising her affinity in the game was never easy.
Approach her clumsily, with her perfect Saintess mask on, and you'd hit an iron wall.
To open her heart, you needed a pivotal event to provoke her true self.
Yustina actually had a scaredy-cat side.
The one surefire way was swooping in to save her from a crisis beyond her control.
But that required the main story to progress much further.
And for me to be strong enough to save her.
'...Gotta get stronger.'
In the end, that was the answer to everything.
This time, I scraped by with the surrender show, but I couldn't keep pulling stunts like that.
I wanted to grow stronger ASAP.
Lost in those thoughts as I walked, someone came dashing up.
"Jeron! Are you okay?!"
Yuria, on the verge of tears.
She immediately started patting my arms, shoulders, and back, checking for injuries.
She seemed utterly uninterested in my shocking statement or the bizarre match result.
Her only worry was that terrifying blow from the Saintess.
Yuria really is sweet....
Of course, my perfect defense left me unscathed.
"I'm fine, so don't worry."
"Phew... Thank goodness. I was so scared you'd gotten badly hurt...."
Mid-sentence, she realized she'd groped me without permission and blushed crimson.
She yanked her hands back and fled.
"W-Well, since you're okay, I'll go prepare for my last match!"
"Good luck, Yuria."
I cheered her retreating back.
Next came Artel.
"...Jeron, good work. I watched the match. Blocking even that attack so casually... Impressive as always. I learned a lot."
Her blue eyes gazed softly at me.
"And I think your judgment was sound. If the Saintess had died or been too injured to recover, it would've been a political nightmare."
She seemed to genuinely believe my crazy claim.
She rated me higher than I thought.
But she focused elsewhere.
"That defense spell, though... You drew inspiration from that spell we saw in the dungeon, right?"
The Skull King's [Curtain of Darkness], probably.
It was similar.
"Yeah, that's right."
I nodded shamelessly.
"Recreating it already from that... As expected of you, Jeron...."
Artel looked sincerely impressed.
She pondered a moment, then said, "...If even you acknowledge me, I can't slack off. See you."
She left.
Soon after, Karen burst in, barely containing her excitement.
"Jeron! As expected, incredible! You completely dominated the Saintess!"
Karen clenched her fists as she spoke.
"Sure, the loss stings a bit result-wise, but with such a solid reason, it was even cooler! 'The strong don't harm the weak,' as the General always says!"
Karen went further, calling me the strong one and the Saintess the weak.
'The dungeon left more impact than I thought...?'
Just how highly did she rate me?
I was embarrassed but kept a calm smile.
"But wait! I've trained like crazy based on the inspiration you gave me back then, and I've gotten way stronger! I'll catch up to your level soon and fight you someday!"
'Already...?'
I was inwardly startled by her words.
A genius's growth speed truly defied imagination.
And she still hadn't given up on sparring with me.
Haa, this was turning into a headache too.
"Then I'll head off to train!"
Karen vanished as quickly as she'd come.
The last was Ciel.
"Jeron— I saw it all—."
She looked drowsy as usual, but her golden eyes shone brighter than ever.
Beyond sparkling, they held a hint of desire.
"That thing earlier. You amplified black magic with regular magic, right—?"
She continued.
"At first, it seemed so forced, like, huh? What's that about—? But you sacrificed stability on purpose for that burst of defense— Good idea—."
'...She saw right through it?'
I was genuinely shocked.
Ciel had perfectly analyzed the whole sequence: me using [Unstable Amplification] to empower [Dark Shadow Barrier] and block the Saintess's attack.
And yet.
"How do you even think of stuff like that—? You're just too fun, Jeron—."
She drew closer as she spoke.
Her short stature naturally put her looking up at me.
She stared straight into my eyes.
"Being around you feels like it'd be fun every single day— I wanna stay with you forever—."