Chapter 102
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Clang! Clang!
The train the children were on moved swiftly.
The small magical train installed in the Forest of Martial Arts operated on a different principle than what they had been riding.
Unlike the conventional trains that ran on wheels, it levitated using a repulsive force generated by magic between the tracks and the train, using that levitation as a propelling force.
…It could even be self-controlled.
It was an advanced train that was rare in non-regulated areas due to the high cost of equipping the basic facilities.
However, because of the Forest of Martial Arts, where sudden situations occasionally occurred, the academy boldly invested in and installed it.
“Wow, it’s really fast!”
Evergreen, who came from the northeastern edge of the empire, had never ridden such a train, let alone seen one.
During the test, she hesitated whether she should really ride it, but now she was admiring the passing scenery with sparkling eyes.
As the strong wind blew, Evergreen’s golden short hair spread out like a fan.
Sitting in the cockpit, Cuculli poked Luke’s side.
“Hey, quickly insult her.”
“…What insult?”
“A while ago, you said I looked like a country bumpkin.”
Luke, lowering his voice, replied, “When did I?”
“Look at this. I was happily jumping around, and you told me to back off because I smell like the countryside… Ugh!”
Just as Evergreen, who had finished observing, was returning to the room with a flushed face, Luke promptly kicked Cuculli away.
Cuculli, crumpled in the corner, rolled on the floor with a resentful expression.
Of course, Luke paid no attention.
“Finished sightseeing?”
“Yeah! The forest looked pretty from the running train. It was scary a moment ago.”
A bright smile appeared on Evergreen’s cheerful face.
Luke, with a satisfied expression, was about to respond when he felt the gaze of an unwelcome guest and quickly hardened his expression.
Evergreen continued speaking.
“By the way, have you guys scored well?”
“More or less?”
Luke checked the score recorder on his wrist and nodded.
Cuculli’s suggestion to take the train turned out to be right.
The place where they started the test was the Forest of Martial Arts, the northern entrance.
In other words, the test progressed by heading south together.
Therefore, quickly detecting and preempting high-scoring magical creatures was the key to a high score.
Thanks to boarding a highly mobile train, they could handle the creatures much faster than other classmates.
The creatures drawn by the noise of the train were a bonus.
“Although we couldn’t gather many magic stones….”
Even with just the points earned from handling creatures, they were likely to rank high enough to stand out.
“Wow….”
As Luke explained, Evergreen momentarily had a disappointed expression.
She had anticipated it, but dense forests like this were not favorable battlegrounds for her, an archer.
Despite running around to collect magic stones with sweaty feet, she had little success.
“It seems like someone has already swept through here.”
Her collection pouch was almost empty.
“Would a hero give a disciple title to a plain kid like you?”
Recalling Lucas’s teasing from earlier, Evergreen unconsciously hid the score recorder behind her.
Luke casually said, “Want some magic stones?”
Before Evergreen could refuse, Cuculli, who had been silently watching their conversation with a smirk, intervened.
“Is it okay? She seems to be trying to cheat for real.” “….”
“If you meet the wrong girl, you’ll be in trouble.”
Cuculli reached out and patted Evergreen’s slumped shoulders.
“It’s okay, it’s okay! You can get plenty of points from now on.”
“Huh?”
“Get ready to get off. We’re almost there.”
At that, Evergreen raised her head.
Come to think of it, she hadn’t asked about the destination.
“But where are we going?”
“Ta-da! Here!”
Shff-!
Cuculli pointed to a part of the map while waving the map in his hand.
“Since the control center radius is restricted within 1 km, we just need to continue heading south from this point and take down everything.”
Luke nodded in agreement, tilting his head.
“There probably hasn’t been anyone else reaching this location yet. So, the first ones to get there will get more points. With the three of us, we can easily subjugate high-scoring creatures.”
“…Geez, be kind to me too.”
“Shut up, Cuculli.”
Evergreen laughed, looking at Luke and Cuculli bantering.
Amidst the enjoyment, she steeled herself.
Her friends were there to help.
She had to do her best not to be a burden.
“All right then, let’s disembark!”
“…Isn’t it ‘alight’?”
“That just sounds weird!”
So, the kids parked the train at the station about 1 km south of the control center….
Kwaaang-!
Soon, they heard an unidentifiable explosion.
* * *
Meanwhile, after repeated extermination and exploration, Ban and Leciel had arrived near the control center.
As time passed, their teamwork improved significantly.
Ban was the person who could find the textbook-perfect answers the fastest in any situation.
On the other hand, Leciel was the type to overwhelm with overwhelming power.
When the two combined their strengths, a pattern emerged—heading to the most suitable path with the fastest steps.
…It was truly a terrifying synergy.
Leciel looked at the score recorder, which displayed scores much higher than expected.
‘…Is this why he emphasized learning how to fight with classmates?’
A smile appeared on Leciel’s lips, subtle enough for only herself to notice.
With these scores, it was a definite first place.
Cuculli wouldn’t even come close.
The hero would be shocked.
He would wonder how she managed to cooperate with classmates so well.
“Well, let’s head further south now.”
Leciel took the lead, and that’s when it happened.
Kwaaang-!
An untimely explosion drew their attention toward the control center.
Naturally, they stopped in their tracks.
“…What’s that?”
“Sounds like an explosion?”
Boom! Boom!
The explosions continued sporadically.
As the forest was dense, and the control center was much higher than their location, nothing was visible.
“What is it…?”
Ban muttered with round eyes.
The explosions reminded him of the auction house incident.
But this was Rosenstark, surely safer than anywhere else.
“…It’s towards the center, could it be an accident?”
“Or maybe part of the test.”
“But it doesn’t seem like that….”
The boy, who was speculating, abruptly closed his mouth.
Leciel’s eyes widened as the color rapidly drained from the boy’s face.
“Why are you like that?”
“L-look over there.”
Ban’s finger pointed towards the sky in the direction of the control center.
Even Leciel, turning her head with a puzzled expression, soon stiffened.
“What… is that?”
It seemed like darkness was creeping in from a distance.
The sky, usually bright as any other morning, gradually darkened.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
A warning sound echoed from their wrists.
Highly concentrated demonic energy clouds were spreading out from the control center, with the center itself being the focal point.
Breaking the silence first, it was Leciel.
“Are they increasing the demonic energy concentration for difficulty adjustment?”
“But isn’t the concentration too thick for that? Even the explosions we heard earlier…”
“Then, an accident?”
“It seems that way….”
The demonic energy clouds, even from a distance, were so dense that they felt like they could choke the breath out of them.
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Ban narrowed down his sensing, extending it far into the distance, and then absorbed the remaining mana into his body.
Leciel, with a frown, also drew up the mana within her.
…At that moment.
Rustle-!
A strange presence was felt.
.
.
.
The kids, who had been on high alert, instinctively hid their bodies beneath the trees and bushes.
…Thud.
…Thud.
A man in a white uniform was stumbling as he walked.
‘Is he a control center employee?’
Leciel’s pupils dilated slightly.
‘…Blood?’
Bloodstains were smeared across the man’s white uniform.
It seemed like an incident had occurred at the control center.
Leciel tried to stand up to offer help.
However, at that moment, Ban, who she naturally expected to join her in assisting, firmly grabbed her sleeve.
“…Ban?”
Leciel turned to look at him with a puzzled expression.
“Just wait. Just wait for a moment.”
“Wait?”
Her eyebrows narrowed.
The demonic energy clouds were rapidly approaching.
They would reach this area soon.
For an ordinary person, exposure to such dense demonic energy concentration, even for a brief moment, could be fatal.
“Sorry, just 10 seconds.”
“…Fine.”
However, after a moment of hesitation, Leciel stopped.
Ban’s judgments were always rational.
That was something she had clearly felt today.
‘…That person.’
With a brief moment of relief, Ban silently stared at the stumbling man.
‘Something’s off.’
This hill was more than 1 km away from the control center.
The explosion was heard about 3 minutes ago.
How could an ordinary person traverse a rough forest for 1 km in that short time?
‘Especially with injuries.’
Of course, it could be that the person was lucky to escape the accident site.
But then, another inconsistency arose.
‘If that’s the case, what kind of injury would cause this? We’ve already cleared all the creatures around here.’
…5 seconds passed.
No clear answer emerged from his contemplation.
Finally, Ban, willing to bear the mana consumption, expanded the range of his sensing, which he had previously reduced.
Woo-woo-
Sending magical energy through the intensified magical concentration, the boy’s face turned pallid.
“….”
Meanwhile, Leciel became increasingly uneasy.
The man groaned in pain.
The demonic energy clouds were getting closer.
Ban remained silent.
Out of the blue, Ban uttered something utterly unexpected the next moment.
“Demonic energy.”
“What?”
“I sense demonic energy from that person.”
“What are you talking about?”
Why would a human emanate demonic energy?
“I don’t know either…”
It was the moment when they looked at the man with eyes full of doubt.
“Cough.”
He suddenly scratched his chest as if in agony and collapsed to the ground.
The rough touch tore apart the thin fabric of his uniform without mercy.
Ban and Leciel halted their movements for a moment.
It wasn’t because they were concerned about the man.
“…Huh?”
Something unfamiliar reflected in their eyes.
‘Magic circle?’
Mysterious symbols and formulas densely covered the upper body of the man.
The density was so high that almost no bare skin was visible.
‘What kind of magic circle is this?’
…If there was someone with knowledge of demon magic rituals, they would have immediately evacuated the kids.
But even Ban, well-versed in various knowledge, was not that knowledgeable.
Therefore, the kids did not flee and instead observed the man in place.
The inexplicable sense of unease kept them from getting closer.
…And soon, they realized something.
That magic circle.
“It’s not drawn, is it?”
It was engraved.
Fresh blood was still flowing from the yet-unhealed parts.
A crooked magic circle like a child’s scribble.
Leciel furrowed her brows.
It was because she realized one more dreadful fact.
“The parts that are hard to reach are even more messed up.”
In other words, someone had carved it on themselves.
But who could mutilate their own body like that?
While they were retreating in the growing unease, something happened.
Swoosh.
The man’s hand, wandering through the air, moved toward the only part on his upper body without any symbols.
Something was happening.
Ban was certain.
“Let’s go.”
So, without hesitation, Ban grabbed Leciel’s wrist.
The direction was behind them.
Tadadak-!
As the kids ran, they looked back.
The man’s hand dug into his left chest, the only area without any symbols.
Something was unfolding.
Splash.
As if responding to the man’s actions, demonic energy clouds that had been scattering throughout the forest poured down on him.
The magic circle engraved on his body glowed bright red.
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