Practical Exam (5): The Barrier That Seals Us
I didn't recall any such incident, so I apologized. "Sorry. I don't remember that at all."
"I-it's fine! More than that, I wanted to thank you! You helped me, but you ended up getting disciplined and even demoted... I'm truly sorry."
"Is that so? It doesn't really bother me. By the way, why are you speaking so formally to me?"
"Y-yes? W-well, that's because you're a noble, Vern, and the one who helped me... so of course..."
"This is the academy. We're both students, so there's no need to use formal speech. It actually makes me uncomfortable."
"...I see... Then I'll try my best. Vern."
"Good."
I stood up from my seat and began stretching lightly. We'd rested enough, and Elin seemed to have recovered quite a bit of her stamina, so it was time to get moving again. The golems were probably starting to stir by now too.
The red sunset that had filtered through the leaves gradually vanished, giving way to a quiet night. The students who had entered the mountain were likely all taking a breather right now. The path to the summit was brutal. Mount Galia had no monsters living on it, but that was exactly why the teachers had probably rigged traps everywhere they went. It was everyone's first time on this route, the trails weren't maintained, and there were bound to be plenty of sabotage attempts between rival groups. Exhausted as they were, they would have come to an unspoken agreement to rest.
By this point, nearly all the low-point objects would be gone, leaving only the golden ones that granted full marks. But that was fine. Even if we rushed to the summit now, descending the mountain with tired bodies wouldn't be easy. Obtaining an object wasn't the end—you had to protect it all the way back to the base camp. It was no small feat. That was why right now, while everyone was worn out and resting, was the perfect time to take care of the golems.
If only I'd run into Ron and Lloyd along the way... I was too far behind. No matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find them. It couldn't be helped. For now, Elin and I would have to search together.
"Elin, can you stand? We need to move."
"I think I'm feeling better. I can walk on my own now...!"
She tried forcing herself up alone, lost her balance, and started to fall. I caught her just in time. Walking was still too much after all. Her ankle was properly sprained, after all. Of course, it had to be hardest on her. She hadn't received any treatment since midday. I'd torn part of the clothes I was wearing and wrapped them around her ankle as a makeshift compression bandage, but it didn't seem very effective.
If I had protected her properly from the start, she wouldn't have gotten hurt. It was my oversight. Therefore, I had to take responsibility for her at least.
No matter what happens, I'll make sure you get full marks, Elin.
"Don't push yourself. You don't look like you're in any condition to walk yet."
"S-sorry. I've become a burden to you again, Vern... I wanted to help you properly when we met again..."
"There's no need to apologize. You're already doing more than enough. Here, hold on to me."
I slowly supported her so she could stand. Once she was fully upright—though still in an awkward posture—I spoke to her.
"Now. Get on my back."
"....."
"What's wrong? Feeling embarrassed all of a sudden?"
"No... it's not that. It just seems like it'd be too hard on you, Vern. You've been carrying me and running for hours. So..."
"If that's all, don't worry about it. You're so light that it's not tiring at all. Come on, let's go."
"Th-thank you. Vern."
When I said she was light, it wasn't just empty words for her sake—she really was incredibly light. She wasn't short; she had about average height, yet she weighed almost nothing. She was so light that I sometimes worried about her health, but I pushed those thoughts aside. It might partly be because Elin was so light, but it was probably also because my own stamina had improved.
With that, I carefully lifted her onto my back and started running toward the mountain.
I ran while carrying Elin for dozens of minutes. We lost a lot of time because Elin kept detecting traps, forcing us to take detours. Only now were we truly beginning to climb the mountain.
The sky we looked up at was pitch dark. The sun had set long ago, and tiny stars were already twinkling in the deep blue expanse. The soft moonlight filtering through the dense trees gently illuminated the path ahead.
I gradually slowed my pace. No matter how much the moonlight helped, we had neither torches nor lanterns. Running recklessly like we had during the day was out of the question. I adjusted my breathing carefully as I climbed the uneven trail.
This is actually pretty good training.
Running while carrying Elin and circulating mana. It felt like jogging with several sandbags strapped to my body. Not that Elin was particularly heavy, of course. That was just how it felt.
That aside, it was eerily quiet. At night the path was hard to see and the traps were numerous.
And there might be students lying in ambush.
In the original story, there were quite a few students who ignored the objects and instead stole them from others who had already found them. We couldn't let our guard down. While causing serious injuries was impossible, they could still inflict moderate wounds like what had happened to Elin.
"Elin, there might be people hiding nearby. Stay extra alert."
"Yes! That's why I've been scanning the area since earlier, but it looks like there's no one around here."
"I see... Then let's climb a little higher. By the way, Elin, are you uncomfortable? You've been on my back this whole time."
"N-not at all! It's not uncomfortable in the slightest! Your back is so soft and fluffy, Vern! It's really comfortable, so I'm fine! Though I do feel bad that it must be harder on you..."
"It's fine. I've been through this sort of thing a lot before, so this is nothing."
Still, we've been climbing for quite a while now and haven't encountered anyone. That's strange.
It wasn't that there was nothing at all. As we ascended, I saw clear traces of triggered traps and residual magic all around us. And after checking while climbing, I realized every single magic tool and supply the teachers had hidden was gone. The students who had gone ahead must have taken everything.
But it was odd that the detection magic wasn't picking up anyone. By now the golems should be moving actively, so they ought to be showing up. Yet there wasn't a single student in sight... Had I missed something?
This was the first event of Act 1—the very first event the protagonist would tackle. This practical exam shouldn't have anything special; it was supposed to be a perfectly ordinary chapter with moderate difficulty.
No way. Had it already begun to move?
But why? Did something happen at the academy while I was suspended?
"Elin. Sorry to ask this out of nowhere, but while I was suspended, did any incident occur inside the school?"
"Ah! You didn't know, Vern. Well, you see, a student from D-class among this year's second-years supposedly cleared a 3rd Grade dungeon."
What?!
I was so shocked I nearly dropped Elin and jumped. I almost broke my usual blunt persona. My surprised expression must have shown clearly, because Elin, who was watching my face, let out a small giggle.
"So you can make a surprised face too, Vern? It's very subtle, but I can tell when I look closely."
"Never mind that. Tell me about that transfer student."
"Hmm, okay. Anyway, that D-class transfer student who enrolled recently solo-cleared a 3rd Grade dungeon that suddenly appeared near the academy. Everyone's been talking about it."
"What does he look like?"
"I heard he has uncommon black hair like you, Vern, and green eyes."
Black hair and green eyes were the default options given when first creating a male character.
So the protagonist had already started moving. But this was too fast. Dungeons starting to generate around the academy was something that happened after Chapter 1. And for the current protagonist to solo-clear a 3rd Grade dungeon wasn't impossible, but it was extremely difficult. The dungeon I had gone to recently was only a 6th Grade one. Was this world's protagonist stronger than the one from the original story I knew?
"Then what's his name?"
"Um... what was it again... Ian...? I think it was Ian."
It really was the protagonist. If you didn't set a name, it always defaulted to Ian. If that was the case, there was only one possible answer.
The hostile force Requiem had begun to move.
The reason was probably the original protagonist. If the game story progressed normally, Requiem—which normally began its activities in Chapter 2 after Chapter 1—must have sensed that this protagonist was too powerful from the early stages and started moving ahead of schedule. But that kind of development usually only happened from the second playthrough onward.
Of course, I didn't have the luxury of thinking about that right now. It was no longer just us inside this mountain. There was no telling what Requiem had done here.
Searching for objects was now meaningless.
I need to gather the rest of the party. No—I need to gather every student in the mountain.
"Elin, try using detection magic again."
"Yes!"
"......"
As expected. The magic didn't work. I had suspected as much, but from earlier, circulating mana had become impossible. Naturally, that meant we couldn't use magic either.
"Elin. As you probably noticed, we can't use mana right now."
"Then are there golems nearby?"
I shook my head.
"No. Look carefully."
I gently set Elin down, picked up a stone lying nearby, and hurled it with all my strength.
Clang!
The stone I threw toward the path we had come from stopped dead, as if blocked by an invisible wall.
"...What is this?"
"It's a barrier. A large-scale one that blocks mana, at that. Once you enter, you can't leave again."
In other words, we were trapped. Inside this enormous mountain.