Chapter 008
Chapter Title: Conquer This World
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“It’s been a while, Vice-Lord Jis.”
“Have you been well? Imperial Court Wizard Rozes.”
Jis greeted Rozes Llewellyn.
Rozes Llewellyn.
A cousin of the current head of the Llewellyn family, he held the position of Imperial Court Wizard.
“To think that Abad, Chelsea, and Celia are all entering Lumerne in the same year. Hahaha! As fellow citizens of the empire, this is truly a joyous occasion!”
Abad, the family head's son, was sixteen. Chelsea was fourteen.
From the empire's perspective, having three of the nation's most promising talents enter in the same year was a wonderful thing.
However, for the two families vying for the title of the empire's most prestigious house, it marked the beginning of a grueling competition.
“Though Abad will surely take the top spot in the western entrance exam.”
“Do you have a reason for being so certain?”
“Abad and Celia are certainly skilled enough to compete for the top position.”
Rozes glanced at the examiner, Albi, standing on the platform.
“This exam is unusual. There are many variables. And Abad has Chelsea.”
He was implying that the two siblings would work together to defeat Celia.
Chelsea was skilled enough to be ranked among the top five applicants.
If she were to help Abad, even Celia would be helpless.
*It's disadvantageous in many ways... but I can't say it's hopeless.*
He had a joker on his side as well.
Just as Jis smiled knowingly, thinking of Leo.
A giant, square magic mirror materialized in the air.
“Ooooh—” The audience let out a collective gasp of awe.
It was a spell that allowed one to see inside the World of Heroes.
The exam proceedings were broadcast here.
The magic mirror began to glow, and an image appeared.
The moment they saw the image.
“Pfft—!”
Jis burst out laughing without realizing it, while Rozes's eyes widened.
There was no sound, but a girl with light sky-blue hair was screaming.
A bonfire was blazing beneath the girl, who was dangling in midair with her hands and feet bound.
And a white-haired boy, holding the vine, was adjusting the rope with a wicked smile.
***
When Chelsea came to, she was dangling in midair, her hands and feet tied together.
“Wh-what is this?”
“You awake? Since you're up, let me ask. Are you going to cooperate with me? Or not?”
“You'll regret not eliminating me and tying me up with such a crude restraint.”
Chelsea said venomously as she tried to summon her mana.
*Huh? Wait? Why isn't my mana moving?*
It felt like something nearby was suppressing her mana.
“Don't tell me... a mana sealing circle?”
“That's right. I drew it.”
“You were a magic swordsman?”
“No. I don't have any mana right now. So the sealing circle isn't that strong either.”
“Ugh! To think you had an aptitude for magic! But I can break a sealing circle without any mana imbued in it any time I want!”
“I'm sure you could. That is, if you can properly concentrate.”
“What? Hieeek—!”
Chelsea shrieked at the searing heat she felt on her rear.
As Leo lowered the rope, she could feel the presence of the bonfire.
“W-wait! Stop! Kyaaaaaaah! Don't lower me!”
“So? Are you going to cooperate? Or not?”
“As if a Llewellyn would ever cooperate with someone from Jerdinger!”
“Really? Well, don't blame me if your butt gets roasted.”
“Kyaaaaaaah! Stop! Stop it!”
Chelsea struggled.
Searing heat crept up her backside.
She desperately tried to break the sealing circle, but it wasn't easy.
A mana sealing circle requires considerable magical aptitude.
Even one without imbued mana required intense concentration to dispel.
Of course, if Chelsea had been a slightly more experienced mage, it wouldn't have worked.
But for all her skill, she was still inexperienced.
Leo had seen right through that.
Chelsea's face went pale.
*The entrance exam is visible to outsiders! If people saw me like this...!*
This was the height of humiliation!
*Fwoosh—!*
The hem of her skirt caught fire!
“Kyaaah! It's hot! Stop! Stoooop!”
“Swear on your family's name. That you'll cooperate.”
“I'll do it! I will! I'll cooperate, I swear on the Llewellyn name, so please stop!”
Chelsea pleaded, tears welling in her eyes.
*She's just a kid. This is easy.*
He chuckled and pulled on the vine.
Barely freed, Chelsea tearfully extinguished the flames.
*S-surely no one else saw me like this, right? Right. That's it. They couldn't have seen. The exam just started, so they must have been showing someone else.*
Unfortunately for her, however, the very first scene broadcast via the magic was of Leo and Chelsea.
***
*Hmph.*
Albi sighed, a listless expression on his face.
The World of Heroes currently unfolding was special to him.
It was the first page of his own heroic tale.
The catalyst that had set him on the path to becoming a hero.
Watching the applicants struggle in that world, Albi thought.
*Every single one of them is subpar.*
Albi clicked his tongue in irritation.
A hero was one acknowledged by the gods.
That was why people thought of heroes as noble and gallant.
Of course, some were like that.
But Albi, at least, was far from that common image.
He was irritable and pursued efficiency above all else.
He hated inefficiency.
He hated troublesome things, too.
That was why he had designed this exam.
Survival in the magical wilderness.
Those who survive are strong.
It was an exceedingly simple yet effective test for separating the wheat from the chaff.
And its effect was clear.
Eliminating competitors. Fighting monsters to survive. These were the two choices given in this exam.
The choice of the vast majority of applicants was to eliminate their competitors.
*Utterly foolish.*
They probably thought they were being clever.
That it was the fastest way to climb the ranks.
And the monsters in the Forest of Demons—orcs, gnolls, goblins—were not a major threat at the applicants' level.
Trolls were dangerous, of course, but their numbers were few, making them difficult to encounter.
The students made two mistakes here.
First, they failed to properly grasp the information.
Albi had explained the content of the exam, but he had never stated the passing criteria.
In other words, they should have realized that eliminating competitors wasn't the only answer and acted with more caution.
Second, they misjudged the Forest of Demons.
It was a forest that many powerful nations had failed to conquer even with their armies.
Even if they were low-level monsters, fighting them endlessly would be exhausting.
To fight amongst themselves instead of cooperating in such a situation.
If this were a real situation, they would have been annihilated.
*Of course, if one has overwhelming skill, they can hunt monsters and eliminate competitors. They can do both.*
Albi's lips curled into a smirk as he watched the magic mirror.
A girl with black hair and red eyes appeared. She had wreathed her sword in an aura of flames.
*Celia Jerdinger. Just as the rumors said.*
Celia was fighting three trolls.
And behind her, a boy with light sky-blue hair was chanting a spell.
*Abad Llewellyn is the same. The empire's future looks bright.*
The two rivals had, by chance, met as soon as they entered the World of Heroes.
Both possessing the overwhelming skill to pass this exam alone, they had chosen cooperation over competition.
It was because they had seen through the nature of this exam.
*Those two will be fine. If anything, it'll be hard to determine which of them is superior.*
He wore a satisfied expression.
Just as he was thinking that first and second place would undoubtedly go to those two.
The screen changed again.
The applicant shown in the magic mirror was fighting an orc.
*His name was Leo Flove, wasn't it?*
The student who had been the first to appear on the magic mirror's screen.
And the student who had committed the most bizarre act in the entire exam.
Most people were treating Leo, who had tied up the young lady of the Llewellyn family and tried to burn her over a bonfire, as some kind of madman.
But Albi gave Leo high marks.
*Regardless of the method, securing Chelsea Llewellyn's cooperation was something to be viewed positively.*
So he was looking forward to seeing what he would do in this exam.
And what he was showing now was more than he had expected.
No, it was enough to surprise even him, a Hero.
*He doesn't have the same power and flashiness as Celia Jerdinger, but...*
The way he cut down the orc with minimal movement exuded a profound level of mastery.
*An unexpected dark horse.*
***
*Spurt—!*
“Chwaaak—!”
Leaving the orc with a pierced heart behind him, Leo spun around.
The sword was pulled free naturally.
Swung with centrifugal force, the blade precisely lopped off the head of the orc that had been aiming for his back.
The moment they encountered the ten orcs, Leo had charged forward.
Orcs were intelligent monsters; give them an opening, and they would form a battle line to attack.
He had struck first to prevent that from happening.
While Leo cut down the orcs at the front, Chelsea chanted a spell.
“Wind Arrow.”
She fired the completed spell.
*Fw-fw-fw-fwip—!*
“Guaaaaaah!”
“Chweeeek!”
The orcs pierced by the magic screamed.
The spell killed seven orcs.
After cleanly slitting the last orc's throat, Leo flicked the blood from his sword.
Then, without a word, he walked on ahead.
Following behind him, Chelsea muttered to herself.
*Fighting is easy.*
Even if she aspired to be a battle mage, a mage was still a mage.
The most effective tactic was, after all, to leave the front lines to a skilled warrior and focus on providing fire support from the rear.
And Chelsea felt that her rhythm with Leo was perfectly in sync.
She had been furious when she was coerced into partying with Leo against her will, but after three battles, she now thought it was a good thing.
It wasn't just about fighting monsters.
He cleverly herded the monsters into one place so her magic could have the greatest effect.
Magic was an area-of-effect attack. Naturally, it was more effective the more enemies were clustered together.
“Not bad, taking care of orcs so easily without even using Aura.”
“I don't know how to use Aura.”
“What?”
“I haven't learned it yet.”
*Is it possible to move like that without using Aura?*
While she found it questionable, she also understood why she had been caught earlier.
*He wasn't using Aura, so I couldn't sense his mana.*
Chelsea placed a hand on her hip and put on a triumphant expression.
“Revealing your own secret like that! How foolish!”
“With your current skill, you can't beat me, so I'm not worried.”
“Hohoho! Such a bluff.”
“I'm just stating a fact,” Leo said indifferently.
“Honestly, you have incredible skill.”
“Huh?”
“Your mana is strong, and you probably know a variety of spells.”
“You won't get anything out of me by praising me so openly.”
She spoke coyly, but the unexpected compliment pleased her.
“But that's the problem.”
“Huh?”
“You're so skilled that you're failing to properly utilize the essence of wind magic.”
Chelsea's fighting style was to overwhelm opponents with powerful magic.
That was not the essence of wind magic.
“Wind magic is the pride of my family. To lecture a Llewellyn on wind magic... how absurd.”
Chelsea scoffed.
Leo's current statement was unacceptable.
She chanted a spell in runes and extended her staff toward a certain spot.
“Wind Break.”
“Grrooooooar!”
A blade of harsh wind flew into the thicket and tore a hiding troll to shreds.
The troll fell to the ground, twitched, and then went limp.
It was Chelsea showing off her power with a high-level spell she had prepared in advance to intimidate Leo.
*Acting all high and mighty just because he knows a little about magic! He must be shocked after seeing that, right?*
Chelsea wore a smug expression.
Watching her, Leo made an indifferent face.
“That's not how you're supposed to use wind magic.”
The greatest strength of wind magic was its versatility.
Simply crushing opponents with raw power was the least effective way to utilize the unique characteristics of wind magic.
Chelsea's face flushed with anger at Leo's words.
And she whipped her head away, as if she didn't want to hear any more.
*Well, I can't even use magic right now. It's no wonder she finds this absurd.*
He might have in his past life, but for now, he had not yet learned magic.
Leo, who had let out a small laugh, suddenly stopped walking.
Chelsea's eyes widened as well.
The area was littered with troll corpses.
But the condition of the corpses was strange.
They were withered, as if their life force had been sucked out.
“What did this? There shouldn't be any monsters in the Forest of Demons that drain life force.”
Chelsea examined the corpses with a bewildered expression.
After touching a corpse, Leo narrowed his eyes.
*Could this be...*
“First, I think we should join up with Celia and your brother. I think I know what the passing criteria for this exam is now.”
“Huh? What is it?”
Leo gave a meaningful smile to the surprised Chelsea.
“Conquering this world.”