Chapter 80
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Bolt from the Blue
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(4)
5.
Just before the magic duel exam was set to begin.
Gazing at Parco twenty paces away, Ullan recalled the warnings Stella had drilled into his ears relentlessly.
'She told me to go as easy as possible, right?'
Stella had urged him to use only the minimal strength and technique needed to avoid injuring his opponent.
The reason was their prior incidents.
The uproar at the entrance ceremony where his roar had caused over a hundred casualties, and the preliminary match where he'd turned Himmel into a bloody mess.
So if another casualty occurred because of Ullan this time, the punishment might be even harsher than before.
Right after hearing about this.
Ullan had understood his position.
And so he'd heeded her advice.
'Let's see.'
Finishing his thoughts, he glanced around.
As if searching for something.
A moment later, Ullan picked up a small pebble from the ground.
"This should do nicely."
It was small enough that even if it hit someone, it wouldn't be fatal.
Of course, his target was solely Parco's orb. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't hit the man at all.
But no one could predict everything.
That's why he'd chosen the smallest stone available, just in case.
'And when I throw it...'
He had to put as little force into it as possible.
No more, no less—just enough to shatter the orb. As he gauged the precise amount of power needed...
"The exam will begin shortly!"
Stella's shout echoed from afar.
Ullan adjusted his stance.
Planning to hurl the pebble the instant the exam started. And right then.
Tweeeeet!
The whistle blew.
He flung the pebble immediately.
"Ah."
He realized his mistake at the same moment.
A bit more force than intended. But by the time he noticed, the pebble was already airborne.
Kwachik! Crash!
The goal was achieved, at least.
The pebble had pierced the orb dead-on.
But the problem came next.
Thwump! Crunch!
With momentum to spare after shattering the orb, the pebble spun fiercely onward. It struck Parco square in the solar plexus.
"Oops."
This wasn't the plan.
It truly wasn't intentional, so Ullan wore a troubled expression for a moment.
Still, it was too early to panic.
It had more power than planned, but not by much.
'So...'
He figured it might not be such a big deal.
But that was just Ullan's thinking.
Parco, hit by the pebble, staggered wildly before collapsing face-first onto the ground.
Thud!
He crumpled like a ragdoll with its strings cut.
Silence blanketed the exam grounds. But it was short-lived—Stella's scream shattered it once she grasped the situation.
"P-Professor!?"
She rushed into the exam area.
Supporting the fallen Parco.
"Professor! Come to, Professor!"
No response despite her calls.
She hastily checked his breathing and pulse.
Fortunately, nothing seemed seriously wrong. It looked like he'd just fainted temporarily.
Letting out a sigh of relief.
She immediately glared at Ullan.
"Ullan! I told you to go easy!"
"I threw it as easy as I could."
"Then why'd the professor faint!?"
"Probably because a little more force went in than I planned."
"That's not going easy!?"
Stella shouted in exasperation.
Then, with a suspicious look, she asked,
"Y-You didn't infuse it with mana, did you?"
"Absolutely not."
Ullan denied it firmly.
"If I'd infused mana into that pebble, there'd be a hole in his chest by now."
"......"
His chilling reply shut her up instantly.
It didn't sound like a joke coming from Ullan, unlike if it were anyone else.
An awkward silence hung in the air for a moment.
"Cough!"
Suddenly, harsh coughing broke it.
From Parco's mouth. His body twitched as he coughed violently.
"Cough, cough!"
"Professor! A-Are you okay!?"
"......Ah, yes. I'm fine."
He finally nodded.
Then blankly looked around.
"More importantly, why are you in the exam area? And why am I on the floor......"
Perhaps from fainting so abruptly?
Parco seemed to have no memory of the moments before. Stella explained everything, and his eyes widened in shock.
"I fainted?"
"Yes. Sorry about that."
Ullan bowed his head then.
As if ashamed.
"I only meant to break the orb, but unintentionally put a bit more force into it."
"......"
Parco looked dumbfounded.
And rightly so.
Not only had he shattered the orb with a pebble from twenty paces, but he'd knocked him out too.
'If that's really possible...'
There'd be no need for magic duel lectures. Just snipe the mage with pebbles—no technique required.
His face still showed disbelief.
A moment later, he spoke.
"Check the recording device."
Fortunately, the exam ground had one active. Reviewing it would reveal if Ullan was telling the truth.
Soon after.
Ullan's words proved true.
"......!?"
The whistle signaling the start.
Ullan threw the pebble simultaneously, and Parco collapsed on impact. No other actions or interference were recorded.
A straightforward result.
Parco's eyes trembled wildly.
"Wh-What in the......"
Knocked out by a single pebble?
Impossible.
He wanted to deny it, but couldn't. The device couldn't have been tampered with.
Then.
Stella chimed in.
"That's definitely an S-rank."
"Wh-What?"
"You neutralized the opposing mage the instant the exam started. No magic was used either, so no deductions."
"But this is......!"
It wasn't a technique he'd taught.
Ullan had just thrown a pebble.
He didn't want to acknowledge it.
'Especially not to that barbarian...'
He had no desire to give an S-rank—reserved for only one per lecture—to him. Just as he moved to reject it.
"Didn't you say so before the exam, Professor?"
Stella spoke first.
With a beaming smile.
"The shorter the time to neutralize, the higher the score. Oh, and by the way, I've recorded every word since we arrived."
"......"
The audio recorder in Stella's hand.
Seeing it, Parco fell silent.
'Did she volunteer as witness for this...?'
Was this her plan from the start?
He bit his lip.
A question arose simultaneously. Why was Stella going this far for a mere barbarian? It made no sense.
"S-rank, right?"
"......I'll consider it for grading."
"Please say you'll definitely give it."
Stella pressed relentlessly.
Only after securing his firm agreement did she smile in satisfaction.
"Hee hee, thank you."
"......"
"Then we'll be off."
"Farewell. Take care of yourself."
With brief goodbyes.
Ullan and Stella vanished quickly.
Meanwhile, Parco stared dazedly at their retreating backs.
Then.
"I fully understand how you feel."
A deep, familiar voice suddenly spoke.
Parco whipped his head around reflexively.
Before him stood a middle-aged man with a bushy beard. He let out a hollow chuckle and muttered,
"I felt the same way."
"......Professor Harban?"
Harbam Kapitors.
Once a renowned assassin from a frontier kingdom.
A master of stealth techniques, especially tracking. Now he taught tracking, leveraging his skills.
And Parco's longtime drinking buddy.
"You know what my exam is, right?"
Parco nodded silently.
The tracking practical was hide-and-seek.
Students had to find Harban, hidden in the exam ground, within the time limit.
Average time: about thirty minutes.
Over an hour: disqualification.
But Ullan's speed was unimaginable.
"He spotted me in ten seconds."
"......What?"
"I thought I'd erased even my breathing, but he found me right away. Tried again—same result."
And in the second, he'd foolishly added 'neutralize after tracking,' ending up knocked out by a pebble like Parco.
Harbam laughed hollowly repeatedly.
Parco thought of Ullan.
'What the hell is he?'
Finding a stealth master like Harban in ten seconds, knocking out a senior mage with a pebble.
Was he really an Expert?
But then why enter the academy? An Expert could lead a knight order.
"Maybe the rumors are true."
"Hm? What rumors?"
"A story circulating in the kingdom alliance circles—that barbarian's actually the empire's secret weapon."
Out of left field.
But with some basis.
"Look at this incident alone."
"This one?"
"Yeah. When's the dean of the military department personally requesting a re-exam? For just one student, no less."
True enough.
A department head fussing over a single student was excessive.
'Come to think of it......'
Something else nagged.
Stella volunteering as witness and pushing for S-rank afterward was equally odd.
'Definitely suspicious.'
Parco's eyes narrowed.
It reeked of something fishy. Moments later, his gaze sharpened.
'Maybe dig into his background?'
If Ullan truly was the empire's secret weapon as rumored, it warranted reporting to his homeland, Arbal Kingdom.
The Ruben Empire had long eyed Arbal's lands covetously.
Soon, Parco turned away.
His eyes steady.
The look of someone resolved.
6.
That evening.
As the sky turned red.
Heading back after her practical exam, Noa stretched with a weary face.
"Ugh, finally done."
Her expression much relieved.
And for good reason. The engraving practical she'd stressed over since morning was finally over.
Plus, it had drained her stamina considerably.
She'd nearly failed but gritted through and avoided disqualification.
'Just one exam left.'
The long-awaited 'Mana Detection' exam.
One of two major events during Arsen Academy's midterms. Noa solemnly recalled the date.
'......April 30th, Friday.'
The last day of midterms.
She mentally sorted the events at the Mana Spring. From Professor Direk leaving to the monster transformation—everything.
'But I should tell him soon......'
She had to reveal the full incident to Ullan and enlist his help. She'd already planned the explanation.
Drop a hint first, then on the eve, claim a dream foretold the future.
'He's probably at the cafeteria now?'
It was dinnertime, after all.
Barring emergencies, Ullan never skipped meals. And he'd likely finished with Stella by now.
So she headed straight there.
To plant the seed with Ullan.
But near her destination, Noa ran into someone unexpected.
"Took you long enough."
"......!"
A silver-haired girl blocking her path.
Noa's eyes widened.
"D-Dilia!?"
Star Witch, Dilia Arpen.
At her sudden appearance, Noa recalled her earlier words and asked,
"Were you waiting for me?"
"I have something, to say."
Dilia nodded affirmatively.
Then abruptly closed the distance.
As Noa flinched,
Dilia bowed her head.
"......Thank you."
"Wh-What?"
"Your prophecy, helped."
The Abyss worshiper raid.
Surviving that unscathed was thanks to Ullan.
But Noa deserved some credit too.
Her prior warning meant they hadn't panicked as much during the attack.
"So, I came to say, thanks."
And one more thing.
"Let's forget, what happened, before."
"B-Before, you mean......?"
"The preliminaries."
During their one-on-one in the preliminaries.
With mana depleted, they'd grabbed each other's hair and fought.
As Noa belatedly remembered.
"Then, let me reintroduce, myself."
Dilia stepped back.
Hand on chest, she introduced herself calmly.
"I'm Dilia Arpen. A mage who handles constellation magic, and with Ullan, we're, very, special."
Special relationship.
She emphasized those words.
But Noa didn't register it.
She hadn't even fully heard the intro. The situation itself surprised her more.
'To think it'd resolve this easily.'
Totally unforeseen.
But it felt good.
Noa had wanted to reconcile with Dilia too. So she introduced herself similarly.
Ending their fresh exchange.
They'd properly made up.
"Now, can I ask?"
"Hm? Ask what, all of a sudden......"
"Your prophecy."
With that cue.
Dilia leaned in close.
Eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"How does it, work? I'm curious."
In that instant.
Something clicked for Noa.
Dilia Arpen's trait—and one of her penalties.
'Obsession.'
People, food, objects, knowledge—regardless, once hooked, she fixated until satisfied.
'In the original, new magic, closing the Abyss Gate mission, and obsession with Ivela.'
Her Ivela fixation was intense.
During separate missions, she'd lose sleep until reuniting, causing a fuss.
'But this time......'
She'd latched onto 'foresight' instead.
Noa smiled awkwardly.
She wanted to answer but couldn't on this topic.
'Because there's no such thing as foresight.'
Noa's 'foresight' was just original plot knowledge.
Events already happened in the game, so she couldn't explain to Dilia's question.
As she pondered a deflection.
"Huh? Noa?"
A familiar voice from behind.
The one Dilia obsessed over in the original.
Ivela Elead.
"Why are you out here instead of going in......"
She tilted her head.
Then trailed off.
One reason. Spotting silver-haired Dilia beside Noa.
And in that moment.
Her turquoise eyes turned icy cold.
Chapter 21. Bolt from the Blue