To the Academy (1)
Everyone gathered in Soul Academy's conference room looked utterly worn to the bone.
The problem was that the accident which had broken out in the middle of the entrance exams had forced the entire testing process to a halt.
From that day on, every professor at the academy had burned the midnight oil for nearly two straight weeks, working day and night to clean up the aftermath.
If written out in prose, their trials and tribulations would have filled a novel in their own right — and at the end of it all, the professors had finally managed to wrap up the exams within the fortnight.
All that remained now was to select the final special-admission candidate, and then everything would be over.
Inside the conference room, the professors — each one proudly flaunting the length of their dark circles like a badge of honor — were all desperate to finish the job as quickly as possible.
Amid them all, Judy Alber, the academy's headmistress, gave a dry little cough and spoke in a voice so drained it sounded half-dead.
"The next candidate under discussion is Lady Lucy Aln of the Aln family. She was one of the victims caught up in this incident, and given how famous she is, I assume you all know of her. Professor Luka. May I hear your reasons for recommending her?"
"Of course."
Luka rose from his seat, swept his bloodshot, crimson-rimmed eyes across the assembled faculty, and began to speak.
"The reason I wish to recommend Lady Lucy Aln as a special-admission student is..."
What he said was exactly what everyone had expected.
How she had utterly dominated Lady Meryl of the Baines family.
The exceptional leadership she had shown while clearing the dungeon of the entrance exam.
How she had saved every single one of her party members when the Curse of Agra had thrown everything into chaos.
"If someone with achievements like these doesn't qualify for special admission, then who possibly could?"
No professor moved to dispute Luka's impassioned speech, delivered in a voice worn hoarse from overuse.
They were all thinking along the same lines.
It was true that Lucy Aln had committed more than her share of mischief and mayhem in the past, but that was precisely it — the past.
What she had demonstrated now was more than enough to place her among the continent's most promising young talents.
"It is true that Lady Aln has shown results more than sufficient for special admission, however..."
But someone raised an objection.
Molly, the vice principal of Soul Academy.
She met Luka's sharpened glare head-on and, as if it were nothing at all, offered her opinion.
"What must be understood is that the special-admission track exists for those who failed the written examination but demonstrated outstanding results in the practical assessment."
"I am well aware of that, Vice Principal. Which makes Lady Aln all the more fitting for it, does it not?"
It was an open secret that Lucy Aln was a terrible student.
According to the tutor who had once taught her, the girl had lacked even the will to sit down and study in the first place.
No matter how thoroughly she had turned over a new leaf, there was simply no way a single year of study could produce a strong showing on the Soul Academy entrance exam.
The combat professors, thinking exactly that, nodded along in agreement with Luka — but the others did not.
The professors who handled theory subjects were all wearing curiously subtle expressions.
"No. Lady Aln earned scores more than sufficient to pass even without special admission."
Molly resolved the question quietly seeping through the combat professors' ranks.
With the utterly unbelievable news that Lucy Aln had achieved excellent results.
"I'm sorry — what?"
As Luka blinked in disbelief, one of the professors present — the one who taught literature — raised a hand.
"Lady Aln scored an 87 on the literature portion. That places her comfortably in the upper ranks."
Hard on the heels of those words, the history professor spoke up.
"In history, she scored a 98. Her only mistake was on a question that was practically handed to her — a modern-era event."
"Her magic theory score is comparatively weak. A 68. Barely scraping the average."
Last of all, the dungeon studies professor let out a sigh before speaking.
"As for dungeon studies, the professors are currently in a meeting to decide how we're even supposed to grade her."
"Why on earth?"
"Because a hundred doesn't seem like it'll be enough."
With that, the dungeon studies professor read aloud one of the answers Lucy had written on her exam.
"First, allow me to summarize the question. It is a written-response item concerning the proper method for dealing with a horde of undead."
'The thing to watch out for when dealing with the brain-rotted scrub undead is that while they're losers, they cling to you like roaches and just. Won't. Die.'
"Hold on. Hold it right there."
The moment that first sentence was read aloud, one of the combat professors cut in.
"Is that... genuinely what Lady Aln wrote?"
"Yes. I'm reading it exactly as written. Why else would I be putting words like 'scrub' and 'loser' in my mouth?"
"...My apologies. Please continue."
The answer being relayed through the professor's mouth was, if anything, overloaded with profanity — but strip that away, and it was a remarkably solid piece of work.
What to watch for when facing the undead.
How to adapt when variables arose mid-fight.
The optimal party composition for clearing a dungeon dominated by undead.
Lucy Aln's answers were so precise that one would believe they came from a veteran raider on the front lines — the very image of a perfect-score response.
But that wasn't the remarkable part.
Up to that point, there had been nothing particularly unusual about it.
"Here is where it becomes important."
'The undead are so pathetically dim that without a commanding entity, they just swarm around like gnats — useless scrubs, all of them. Even the dumbest dungeon lord knows this, which is why they usually place a commander among the horde.
...The commanding entity — the high-tier undead — does not observe the battlefield with its own eyes to direct the fight. It stations a handful of scrubs below it to relay the situation, receives information through them, and issues its commands on that basis.
In other words: kill the relay scrubs first, and you reduce the commanding entity to an idiot who has no idea what's happening in the battle. To flush them out...'
By the time the dungeon studies professor finished reading, a heavy silence had settled over the conference room.
Because what was written there shattered the conventional wisdom they had all taken for granted.
"Is this truly an idea that came from Lady Aln herself?"
Tension gathered in Luka's bloodshot eyes.
For a single student's insight, it was far too revolutionary.
"Yes. Hard to believe, but it's true."
"Astonishing. If what Lady Aln wrote is accurate, dealing with the undead will become vastly easier."
Taking out the commanding entity first when facing an undead horde was practically common knowledge.
The instant command collapsed, the horde dissolved into a disorganized rabble.
But adhering to that common knowledge was extraordinarily difficult.
A high-tier undead possessed intellect superior to that of most humans.
Which meant it understood exactly what its own death would mean.
And so a high-tier undead never, ever showed itself on the front line.
Attacking a command entity hiding at the back of the horde was, in practice, impossible — making the strategy of eliminating command first one that was correct in theory alone.
But with the method Lucy had proposed, everything changed.
It meant acquiring a means to disrupt the chain of command without ever hunting the commander down.
"Beyond that, many of the things Lady Aln wrote on her exam are far too vicious to have come from some noble lady who's never cleared a dungeon in her life."
"You're telling me this isn't even the end of it?!"
"No. Hence the professors saying that even a hundred points won't suffice."
As the quiet conference room gradually grew clamorous, Molly reined it in with a dry cough.
"I trust the situation is clear by now? Professor Luka — Lady Aln is not a candidate for special admission."
"Understood."
Lucy Aln had earned top-tier results in the written exams, and her practical performance lacked nothing even at the very highest level.
She had, for all intents and purposes, already passed into Soul Academy.
"At this point, the question isn't whether she passed — we should be wondering where she'll rank among the entire incoming class."
With those words, Luka returned to his seat.
*
"Then we shall begin, my lady."
'Ready when you are.'
"Come at me, loser."
The moment I took my stance, Karl swung his sword.
Its speed was already far beyond what my eyes could follow — but that was fine.
I had the Iron Wall skill.
I raised my shield as the skill guided me, and almost immediately the sword slammed into it.
I felt the arm that had blocked the blow go numb and tingling.
Seriously, this guy has been giving me zero mercy lately.
What's his plan if his own lady's face gets scarred up at this rate, huh?!
<Good girl. Now!>
Grandpa's voice rang out as I gritted my teeth and absorbed Karl's relentless barrage.
The instant I heard it, I recited a prayer in my heart.
'The Chief God, who cherishes Eliot, wrought a miracle, and the demon's strike could not touch him.'
At once, the mana welling up from within me formed a barrier of divinity before my eyes.
Karl frowned upon seeing it, but the sword was already in motion — far too late to pull back.
The blade bounced off the barrier, and in that instant, an opening appeared.
Without a moment's hesitation, I charged through the barrier and swung my mace.
Perhaps he judged it too late to bring his sword back around.
Rather than meet my attack head-on, Karl chose to deflect it with pure footwork.
I could see his eyes locked onto my every movement.
<Now! Unleash the light!>
'When the world was about to be swallowed in darkness, all the gods gathered and cried out for light, and a single ray of radiance poured down from the heavens.'
I recited the prayer in my mind and closed my eyes.
No sooner had my eyelids shut than a brilliant light burst forth, blazing even through my skin — and when I opened my eyes again, I saw Karl staggering back, caught square in the flash.
Yes!
Confirming that Karl had been blinded by the flash, I deliberately exaggerated my footwork.
So that even amid his confusion, he would sense my approach.
So unmistakable that he couldn't help but suspect it was a trap.
My ploy worked exactly as intended.
Even with my mace raised high, Karl didn't move.
This is it. My chance!
Finally — a chance to land a hit on the knight who'd been tormenting his own lady without an ounce of self-awareness!
The instant I brought the mace down with everything I had, Karl's hand moved.
Clang!
The mace I was sure I had swung came ricocheting away, and the Iron Wall skill screamed a warning of danger into my mind.
But it was already far too late to respond.
Eyes wide open, I simply waited for the attack to arrive.
Yet Karl's sword never touched me.
As I stared at the blade frozen mere inches from my face, Karl lowered his sword.
"Splendidly done, my lady. I truly thought that one might land."
'Don't lie to me.'
"Loser. You think I look like some idiot who'd swallow flattery hook, line, and sinker?"
"I meant every word, my lady!"
The opinions of a knight who nodded along to whatever I said were not to be trusted.
<You scamp. How many times must I tell you — stay calm precisely when the chance arrives.>
'Sorry, Grandpa.'
<Once more, from the top.>
'Yes sir!'
Nudged along by Grandpa's scolding, I squared up into my stance once more.
Across from me, Karl raised his sword in turn.
"My lady!"
That was when it happened. From far off, my maid came running, calling my name.
Wondering what was the matter, I lowered my weapon and waited — and she handed me a letter.
'What's this?'
"Hey, scrub of a maid. What is this?"
"It's a letter from Soul Academy!"
Soul Academy?
There was only one kind of letter that place would be sending.
An acceptance — or rejection — notice.
Which meant this single envelope was about to decide my entire fate?
I took one deep breath, tore open the letter, and checked its contents.
And upon reading what was written inside, I froze solid on the spot.
"My lady? What could possibly be written in there to leave you like this?"
'Uh. Well, I did get in, but...'
"So I passed, sure — but what on earth is this scrub of an academy thinking, making me give the freshman representative address?!"