Chapter 64: The First Letter (64)
Chapter 64: The First Letter (64)
On the day of the Hunting Festival, the Academy buzzed with festive fervor all day long.
From the crack of dawn, students who had decided to open stalls moved busily. The ingredients brought in from all over for this day were already heightening the atmosphere. In just a few hours, those technicolor ingredients would begin to give off mouth-watering aromas.
The same was true in front of the forest, the heart of the Hunting Festival. Even though the results wouldn't be known until evening, the area in front of the Academy’s Southern Forest was strangely crowded on the day of the festival. It was so packed there was hardly room to step.
The crowds coming to cheer for people they knew arrived the earliest. Then, the stalls responsible for their meals arrived one by one, followed by faculty and students interested in the festival.
While the final results were a long way off, waiting in front of the forest occasionally offered unexpected sights. Some groups would withdraw early due to injuries, while others, deciding they couldn't catch anything better even with more time, would emerge carrying a massive prize.
Of course, the wait was inevitably tedious. To remedy this, the Student Union set up a separate stage to provide minor entertainment for those waiting for the results. It was also an opportunity for clubs that had practiced tirelessly for the festival to show off their skills to everyone.
The spectators gathered in the clearing in front of the Southern Forest weren't just students. Not only were Academy professors present, but high-ranking officials from various countries and sometimes even the Emperor of the Empire himself came to watch the festival to scout for useful talent.
The rules of the Hunting Festival were simple: "Demonic Beast Hunting." The group that hunted the strongest demonic beast won. This simple and clear competitive format was, conversely, the best way to reveal a group's true skill.
Aura density, mana capacity, and the number of rings surrounding the heart—all of these could be factors proving one's strength, but they meant nothing if they couldn't be used properly in actual combat.
Ultimately, to verify someone's skill, they had to go through a real fight. The Hunting Festival was one of the few opportunities at the Academy for students to participate in combat on a large scale.
Perhaps that was why there was never a shortage of participants. Despite the risk of death, hundreds of participants rushed in every year like moths to a flame.
Demonic beasts do not care about social status. Skill was everything in this festival. Because of this, commoners often participated to make an impression on high-ranking officials from various countries.
It was that important of a festival. A festival watched by countless spectators, where celebrities from every nation gathered, and where some people's entire futures were at stake.
Today, I stood on that fierce battlefield. My goal was victory—a path that required me to defeat hundreds of participants with formidable reputations.
Until recently, this was something I couldn't have even imagined. Because of a love letter from the future that arrived one day, I had finally ended up here.
It was funny. To think a single letter could change my life so much in such a short time.
If I won the Hunting Festival, it was guaranteed that I would at least catch the eye of the highest-ranking officials of each country. The quality of the offers I would receive after graduation would change as well.
No, I didn't even need to worry about the future in the first place. According to the letter, my future self would become a hero who saved the world.
The thought was so absurd that a hollow chuckle escaped me. To be honest, although I was participating in the festival because of the love letter, that part still didn't feel real.
There was only one problem facing me right now.
I would make sure that no one else collapsed before my eyes again like Emma. That was my only wish and goal right now.
Among those laughing and chatting now, among those checking their equipment with tense faces, there might be victims. I wanted to prevent that at all costs.
In front of Emma's hospital room, and in front of that middle-aged man who was nothing more than a herbalist, I had to bite my lip and stare at the wall countless times.
One memory filled with guilt and regret was enough. However, I was prepared for the fact that the process wouldn't be easy.
The woman standing before me now was proof of that. A beauty whose golden hair and blood-red eyes stood out intensely against her pale skin.
Delphine Yurdina, the rightful successor of the Yurdina family.
As soon as she appeared, Seria’s body stiffened. The emotion flickering in her eyes was clearly fear. The eyes of a herbivore that had encountered an enemy it dared not oppose.
Senior Elsie, who had been dazed, shifted her gaze, and as soon as she saw Senior Delphine, she bristled like a provoked cat. Her face was full of hostility.
It made sense, since Senior Elsie blamed Senior Delphine for all the humiliation she had suffered recently.
Actually, it was my fault, but human psychology sometimes reaches such convenient conclusions. She should have lowered her tail just at the sight of my hand axe, but since she couldn't bring herself to be hostile toward me, she had simply decided to be hostile toward Senior Delphine instead.
I also had a history with Senior Delphine. Whether it was a stroke of luck or an ill-fated bond, I wasn't sure, but either way, Celine was the only one among the four of us who didn't have a direct connection to her.
Even so, Celine was glaring at Senior Delphine with narrowed eyes. Her gaze was disapproving; she seemed bothered by the rumors that had circulated between Senior Delphine and me.
It was hostility beyond mere coldness. But there was no way Senior Delphine would care about such a thing. She smiled brightly and crossed her arms.
"That was a fairly well-planned surprise attack, but you still deflected it, didn't you?"
"...It's not like you were being serious anyway."
If she had been, she wouldn't have used something like a dagger. Senior Delphine's true power only came out when she held a sword.
I had heard that the moment golden light gathered on her blade, the surrounding area would turn incandescent from the heat. Naturally, even a graze would be a fatal wound, and just clashing swords would cause the high-temperature blade to sizzle and cook the opponent's skin.
It was simple yet powerful. Such was the nature of the aura she had bloomed. In exchange, using that aura for a long time would cause ordinary swords to melt into mush, so she had to use a special blade. But for Senior Delphine, the successor of the Yurdina family, that wasn't a problem.
She had all the money in the world. The true terror of financial power manifested when it was coupled with another kind of strength.
"You'll see my serious side soon enough anyway, so why show it early? By the way, it's been a while since that day, Hand Axe Young Master. I've missed you quite a bit. What's the old saying... longing for you day and night?"
At those suggestive words, Celine's eyebrows twitched. She looked displeased, and Seria was the same.
Seria's gaze had suddenly turned calm. Or rather, it was so calm that her eyes felt murky and heavy.
I broke into a cold sweat, unable to discern Senior Delphine's intentions. A forced smile played on my lips as I spoke jokingly.
"...I did try quite hard to avoid you."
"You shouldn't do that, especially after seeing such a wonderful sight."
Her words had a sharp edge. I had no choice but to fall silent for a moment. The warmth had vanished from Senior Delphine's blood-red eyes, which were usually full of composure.
No matter who she was, having her naked body seen entirely by a member of the opposite sex must have been a humiliating experience. Moreover, hadn't she been bested by me that day?
Of course, from my perspective, it was an unfair treatment. What happened that day was just an accident. I didn't strip her on purpose, and I still vividly remembered Senior Delphine telling me to look as much as I wanted since she was a work of art.
But this was still an era where the concept of chastity was applied more strictly to women. No matter what excuse I made, as long as I had seen a woman's naked body, I was bound to be the sinner.
It was an irrational world. I cleared my throat and changed the subject.
"So, did you come here on purpose? To tell me to prepare to pay the price?"
"No, of course I came to see the Hand Axe Young Master, but... there are a few familiar faces in your group, aren't there? So I thought I'd say hello."
With that, Senior Delphine's eyes swept over Seria and Senior Elsie in turn. Seria, whose eyes had been momentarily clouded, seemed to snap out of it and flinched.
She immediately lowered her head. As if she were a criminal, Seria's eyelashes trembled.
A small hum escaped Senior Delphine's lips. Just as she was about to greet Seria—
"...You damn bitchy vixen!"
A sharp shout pierced my ears. It was a shrill noise that made me reflexively frown. The source of that voice was, without a doubt, Senior Elsie.
It was a voice that didn't match her small stature. It seemed she had succeeded in drawing Senior Delphine's attention.
Senior Elsie stomped her feet in frustration. Though she only looked cute doing it, she seemed to be trying to be threatening in her own way.
"You, you... do you know how much I've suffered because of you?! After that humiliation, I even did that kind of training just to get revenge on you... You're dead meat today!"
Senior Elsie clenched her fists and trembled, but Senior Delphine only smiled, looking rather pleased.
"Oh, really? I'm so glad I could make you suffer that much, Elsie."
"D-Don't laugh! That arrogant smile ends today! I'm going to crush you into the dirt..."
All sorts of insults began to flow from Senior Elsie's mouth. It reached a point where it was uncomfortable for me to listen, but Senior Delphine looked as if she were merely listening to a dog barking.
However, Senior Elsie's chatter did have some effect. At the very least, Senior Delphine seemed to have lost interest. A thick sense of boredom returned to her eyes.
Just as Senior Delphine clicked her tongue and was about to turn away—
"...Seria."
At the faint murmur that escaped her lips, Seria immediately stiffened and replied.
"Ye-Yehet! Ugh... Yes, Sister."
She even bit her tongue, but Delphine looked as if she were used to it. Her blood-red eyes as she looked at Seria were utterly emotionless.
It was like the eyes of an appraiser evaluating an object. She left only one low remark.
"Just do as you always do."
Whether that was warm encouragement or a command to fail today as she always had...
The bystanders wouldn't know. Only Seria and I, who had briefly glimpsed her inner thoughts, would understand.
It was clearly the latter. Seria bit her lip, unable to even meet Delphine's eyes.
Only then did Delphine walk away with a satisfied look. I hurriedly called out to her.
"Senior Delphine, you left your dagger—"
"It's a reward for blocking the surprise attack, Hand Axe Young Master."
I was awkwardly picking up the dagger from the ground when I let out a dry laugh at her words.
Still calling me "Hand Axe Young Master" until the end—I wondered if she even knew my name. I wanted to counter with some other title, but only a few images came to mind. At most, her pale, naked body.
I couldn't exactly call her the "Pink-Haired Young Lady," could I? I clicked my tongue and examined the dagger.
It looked expensive. Since she was giving it to me, I had no reason to refuse, so I tucked the dagger into my coat.
She was like the wind. She arrived without warning and left just as abruptly. But the aftermath she left behind was clear.
Seria was biting her lip in frustration, and Senior Elsie was trembling with rage. It was certain that Celine's mood had soured as well.
It wasn't bad. There was no better motivation than hostility.
Now, all I had to do was compose myself and proceed with the hunt as trained. Just as I was about to try and reset the atmosphere—
Suddenly, a shadow fell over me. Turning my head, I saw three men and women approaching me. Among them, a hulking, muscular man stood right in front of me.
He had dark skin and no hair. He seemed to have shaved his head. Since managing hair during combat wasn't easy, some chose to shave it off entirely. Up until that point, I felt nothing toward the man before me.
However, when I suddenly noticed an axe in each of his hands, a question mark finally appeared in my eyes. I looked up at the man with a "what are you doing?" expression.
The giant of a man, nearly two meters tall, remained silent. As I made a perplexed face, Senior Elsie scurried over to my side and whispered.
"They're Delphine's lackeys... I guess they formed a group?"
"...And who is this?"
"Olmar! 'Twin Axes' Olmar. He's quite famous in the 4th-year Swordsmanship Department. He has plenty of real combat experience since he used to be a mercenary."
Why was he in the Swordsmanship Department if he used axes? That question briefly crossed my mind, but I decided to let it go.
The Swordsmanship Department was a place that handled all melee weapons anyway. It wasn't strange even if his main weapon was an axe. The only unusual thing was that he held two hand axes, one in each hand, instead of a battle axe.
He was a man Delphine kept around. He was bound to be skilled. I stared at him for a moment, and when there was still no reaction, I had to ask Senior Elsie in a small voice.
"But why is this Olmar person...?"
It was at that moment. Suddenly, Senior Olmar tossed both hand axes into the air.
As I stared blankly at the axes, unable to grasp his intent, Senior Olmar skillfully caught and juggled them between his hands. He passed them behind his back and caught them in front.
It was a display of skill, like a circus trick. As I stood there with an expression that said I had no idea what he was doing, Senior Elsie whispered.
"It looks like... he feels competitive toward you?"
She added that he seemed a bit annoyed that our "axe" titles overlapped.
So what? I seriously considered for a moment.
Should I just bash him with my hand axe?
It was the moment my hand lightning-fast drew my hand axe.