Chapter 395
Chapter 395
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 395
Chapter Title: Taking the High Ground (4)
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Round 4 went to Shirone's team. The Shotgun Movement was a strategic weapon, and Iruki's Cancellation completely shut down Suabi.
The score was now 3 to 1.
Shirone's team had the upper hand, and it seemed the current momentum would continue as long as no unexpected variables arose.
“Oh? Has Round 4 only just finished?”
Students began to file out of Combat Arena 3. Canis and Arin were mixed in with the crowd.
Their opponent had been Fermi's team, and the result was a complete victory for Fermi, 5 to 1.
It was a disappointing outcome for Canis and Arin, but it was the kind of evaluation they had to accept if they insisted on their aversion to cooperating with others.
Besides, facing Fermi's team, they couldn't have guaranteed a victory even with the best possible lineup, so neither of them looked particularly dejected.
From a spot with a view of Combat Arena 2's side, Fermi checked the score between Shirone's team and Screamer's team.
“Hmm, 3 to 1.”
“Shirone's team is doing better than expected. My initial calculations suggested it would be a close match.”
Fermi had thought the same. But it was just a matter of probability, and the possibility of other variables emerging was always open.
“The insight to create variables. That's Shirone for you. If they get one more point, there’s a high chance this will be over.”
As he said this, Fermi observed Screamer's team.
‘Of course, there’s no way it’ll end just like this.’
A sinister grin split Fermi's face.
* * *
Though Round 4 was over, Suabi was still staring at Iruki from his team's side.
‘Mercodine Iruki…’
If it weren't for Cancellation, a top-tier Overpowered magic wielded by someone with Savant Syndrome, there would have been no one at the student level capable of inflicting such a crushing defeat on him.
With his hands clasped behind his back, Iruki calmly met Suabi’s gaze.
‘He seems quite bitter.’
He had no desire to provoke him. When it came to processing speed alone, every graduating student was beneath him.
To defeat a savant, you need intuition, not calculation. And it had to be top-tier intuition, on the same level as a savant’s.
“Suabi, let’s go.”
At Screamer’s call, Suabi finally turned away.
A fire blazed within him. He knew there were many strong students in the graduating class, and he had failed last year's graduation exam. But having his entire specialization nullified was a completely different kind of misery.
Screamer gathered his teammates and spoke.
“Let’s group up. We’ll break through the center lane via the shortest route. Pony, you go on the offensive from now on, too. If we lose this round, a comeback will be nearly impossible.”
A score of 4 to 1 would all but confirm their defeat. After all, Shirone's team had Ataraxia, which could guarantee them at least one point.
“No. Pony, keep casting Refresh on us.”
Suabi said, taking off his glasses.
“I’ll do it properly this time.”
Screamer tilted his head.
He had known Suabi for over a year, but this was the first time, outside of the graduation exam, that he had seen him this resolute.
‘Hmm, so he’s completely pissed off, is he?’
For a mage-fist like Screamer, this wasn't a bad thing. He couldn't even begin to guess how to counter Cancellation, but since Suabi himself said he was fine, it was best to trust him.
“Alright, let’s treat this as the final round. I’ll show them what I’m made of.”
The moment Round 5 began, everyone on Screamer's team, except for the guard, converged on the center lane.
It was a rush-and-rush tactic with a high chance of turning the tables.
As the combat package was applied to Screamer, Iruki’s mismatched eyes twitched, and he launched a detachable Spirit Zone.
‘If it’s Cancellation anyway…’
*Fwoom! Fwoomfwoomfwoom!*
Just then, a series of buff effects erupted. The combat package was being applied to all team members except the guard.
Iruki blinked in surprise, but Suabi only gritted his teeth harder and glared at him.
‘How about it? Can you still do it?’
The number of pre-calculated formulas in his head was a staggering 137. And that was the cumulative number while consuming eight per second.
‘Tikitikitakitoki tok tok tikitaki tak takitiktoktikitok!’
As the unique rhythm pounded in his brain, the formulas in his head shot out in all directions.
“Hahaha! Yes! This is it!”
Brimming with power, Screamer charged fearlessly into the center of Shirone’s team, unleashing a flurry of blows on all four of them. Then, just as in the first round, he struck a bold finishing pose.
“Kiyaaaaaah!”
Screamer's team's morale soared. Feeling Suabi’s determination, the wingers also began to play the cards they had been saving.
‘I just need to take out Shirone.’
Ruman thought as he slowly raised his hands, as if drawing energy up from the soles of his feet.
‘Everyone hates me.’
But he didn't care.
To humans, unity was merely a second-best option born from the fear of mistrust. If he could control them, the feelings of others didn't matter.
‘Yes, I am the master of crowd control (self-proclaimed).’
Ruman's cheeks quivered, the whites of his eyes showed, and the corners of his mouth stretched to his ears.
“I am the king of the battlefield!”
His trump card, ‘Spiral Hunter,’ revealed itself.
*Rumble!*
The spiraling ground turned soft as mud, pulling Shirone down. Then it hardened back into rock, clamping firmly around his waist and refusing to let go.
“Now!”
As Screamer charged, Suabi’s concentration soared to an all-time high.
Countless formulas raged like a storm in his mind.
It was a realm of intuition beyond mere calculation, and with every collision of formulas, his tongue flickered rapidly.
‘Tikitakitokitakitakitakitokitakitokitakitikitaki!’
372 pre-calculated formulas.
A faint smile touched Iruki’s lips.
‘I’m glad I joined the graduating class.’
He had never wanted to defeat anyone before in his life. But now, he was beginning to understand.
He hated losing even more.
‘You’re magnificent, Suabi.’
Countless talents, as numerous as stars, each asserted their own strengths.
‘You must have practiced every day. To hold onto your fleeting consciousness, you must have gnawed on the back of your hand every night, striving ever forward.’
Iruki lowered his stance and clenched his fists. It was his own way of responding to Suabi's sincerity.
‘This will shorten my lifespan, but…’
Since entering the magic academy, this was the third time. The first was six years ago during his bloody battle with Nade in the rain, the second was a year ago when he was provoked by Canis in the infirmary hallway.
His brain cells would be destroyed, but did it matter? Beyond the contest, the pride of the Shirone Faction was on the line.
‘You will become a great mage. But not now. Because there are only two people in this world who can stop me. One is Shirone, and the other is…’
An actual spark flashed in Iruki's pupils. It was a phenomenon where electricity generated in his cerebral cortex was projected onto his retina.
‘Me, Mercodine Iruki!’
A torrent of data, a hundred million joules per second, surged through the virtual image in Iruki’s mind.
As he processed an amount of information equivalent to handling every incident in a city at once, his Double Spirit Zone zipped through Screamer's team at a phenomenal speed, canceling all their buffs.
“No way…”
Suabi was dumbfounded. It was a processing speed so overwhelming that it drained him of the will to fight.
*Kwakwakwakwakwang!*
After violently destroying the Spiral Hunter, Shirone led his teammates in a counterattack.
Deprived of their buffs, Screamer's team weakened rapidly and was soon pushed onto the defensive.
“Hah, we’re being pushed back after all.”
Aider sighed.
The downside to a mage-fist's ultimate strategy was the lack of a Plan B. If they lost this round too, there would be no second chance for a comeback.
The boyish look vanished from Aider’s face. He took out a black-and-white patterned chip and swallowed it.
‘It feels a bit iffy, but who cares?’
He would even give up graduation if he could just have fun. No, he couldn't give up graduation. He had to become a mage to have even more fun.
A formula was installed in his mind. According to the dealer, it was likely the advanced Air-type technique, ‘Ghost Movement.’
The mechanism was similar to Shirone’s Ataraxia, allowing him to cast the spell without understanding its internal principles.
“Ah, ahhhh…”
Aider’s eyelids fluttered.
All those days he had restrained his desire to taste human flesh. But there was no need for that anymore. Now that he had made the deal, his graduation was practically guaranteed.
“Hahahahahaha!”
Aider threw off his mask and flew straight toward Shirone’s team’s position. It was a tactic classified as a Reverse Position, but it hadn't been discussed with Screamer's team.
While his own teammates watched in bewilderment, Shirone’s team launched their own magical attacks to intercept him.
The first to reach him was the Photon Cannon. But just before impact, Aider's movements twisted bizarrely. His trajectory swayed like a willow branch, allowing him to evade every single Photon Cannon.
“Huh? Ghost Movement?”
Dorothy, who was watching from outside the arena, had a glint in her eyes.
It wasn't a spell that could be used at the student level. But Aider’s movements couldn't be explained without the AT Algorithm.
‘Did he join Fermi?’
It was hard to believe he had learned it in just a few months. The AT Algorithm, which controlled turbulence to automatically evade approaching objects, was a formula that even professionals struggled with.
Nothing could stop Aider. Reaching the hill, he ran toward the flag.
But against everyone’s expectations, his target wasn't the flag, but Maya. *Thwack!* A powerful kick snapped Maya's head to the side, sending her tumbling down the hill.
“What…!”
Aider straddled Maya’s stomach. His facial muscles twitched in anticipation of unleashing a year's worth of suppressed desires.
“Big sis, this might hurt a little. But you can take it, right?”
Aider’s fists hammered down on Maya. A mindless laugh escaped his lips.
Seeing the terror on her face, a rush of pleasure wiped out his reason.
“Uwaaah! This is so damn fun I could die!”
Aider, raising both hands like a gorilla to pound on her, no longer looked human. The whites of his eyes were showing, and drool trickled from his open mouth.
His sheer brutality left not only his teammates but also the students watching from outside speechless.
“You asked me a question during the Truth or Courage game,”
Arin said.
“‘The ugliest person?’ I was puzzled at first. Since I can’t distinguish the forms of things. I chose Ruman at the time, but the truth is, the most intense Precognition came from Aider. According to the mental classification system, he’s a figure who falls under ‘Wicked.’”
Canis listened in silence.
“Only those who understand evil can feign good. That is the law of good and evil. From start to finish, the only thing in that boy’s mind is the desire to torment others.”
Canis didn't think much of it. Because every human in Radum was like Aider.
“The reason I asked the question was to test you. When you denied the truth, I played along a little more.”
“Right. I thought I could use it as a bargaining chip. But today's Precognition was a bit more blatant. It’s probably because he joined Fermi’s organization.”
“Your existence must have influenced him. He probably figured he couldn't keep up the act for a year with a Precognition user around. In any case, we’ve lost one of our cards.”
Canis let go of the matter without a second thought.
He had dozens of cards left anyway. If anything, it was good to learn just how much pressure Arin's Precognition could put on the graduating class.
“Maya!”
Shirone’s eyes blazed. Seeing Maya curled up, covering her face while being beaten, made his world go white.
“Heeheehee! Does it hurt? How much does it hurt? You’re getting angry, aren’t you? You must hate my guts, right?”
Aider swung his fists with unfocused eyes.
Shirone’s team, rushing in from all sides, didn't even register in his mind. As long as he had Ghost Movement, they couldn’t hit him no matter what they did.
*Zap!*
Just then, a blue spark flashed before Aider’s eyes.
The AT Algorithm activated belatedly, shoving his body back more than ten meters. The image of Nade's face as he swiped with his claws was burned into his retinas. By the time he came to his senses, he was already at the bottom of the hill.
Fear mingled with the ecstasy on Aider’s face.
‘What was that? What did I just see?’
He thought he saw Nade's face, but he couldn't be sure what it was. He belatedly realized one of his legs was trembling uncontrollably.
‘Scared? Me?’
Nade, who had arrived first, stood protectively in front of Maya. The murderous look he had worn when he swung his hand had fragmented, lingering in pieces before fading away.
“Screamer, the flag.”
“Ah…”
Snapping out of it at Pony’s words, Screamer hastily ran and pulled out the flag. No one paid any attention.
Shirone approached Maya. Seeing her still curled up and trembling, his heart shattered.
“Maya…”
Maya was never someone suited to be a mage. Her talent for entering the Spirit Zone should have been used elsewhere. She was an artist who moved people’s hearts, a genius singer.
“Maya, get up,”
Shirone said in a cold voice.
Maya had a family to support and the honor of her tribe to protect. If she broke here, she would never be able to cross the threshold of becoming a mage.
“Get up. We’re still in the middle of an evaluation. If you get disqualified here, we all lose 20 points.”
Maya’s shoulders flinched.
That damn 20 points. But everyone in the graduating class was risking their lives to earn those 20 points.
‘I’m… so scared, Shirone. Everyone here, their coldness… it’s terrifying.’
She wanted to give up. She had endured for her tribe and fought for her family, but the moment she saw Aider’s eyes, she realized.
This wasn't where she belonged.
‘Shirone…’
Maya slowly got to her feet.
She had fallen in love with Shirone. It was a more desperate desire than even her mage license. Everyone in the graduating class would laugh at her, but that was the kind of woman Maya was.
“I… I’m okay… I can still fight.”
As Maya struggled to hold back her tears, Shirone, in turn, felt his own eyes welling up.
He turned to look at Aider, who was snickering in the enemy camp. A terrifying rage filled his eyes.