Chapter 127 : Chapter 127
Chapter 127
Well… it wasn’t surprising.
I had expected as much.
“You’ll now move to your assigned classes.”
But one thing.
‘Matthew’s not here.’
Not just in Class A.
He wasn’t even at the Academy.
I looked at his desk.
No memorial flowers indicating mourning.
…But no owner either.
“….”
“Move immediately.”
At Hailey’s command, the old Class A dispersed… and the new Class A began to arrive.
“Hmph, nothing but annoying faces.”
“Oooh, a new class.”
“…I don’t like this…”
Naturally, Prince Kazaks' faction was there.
Kazaks sat in any seat with a sour expression.
Muller glanced around before sitting.
Shuga spotted me, flinched, and hid behind Kazaks.
“Phew.”
“The air feels different.”
There were also those from Classes C and D.
Not on the level of key supporting characters like Elisha, Bord, Mary, or Lina, but promising talents with guaranteed growth.
“Martin!”
Of course, Luri was there too.
Her skill level was probably between Class B and A.
[Hmm, so this is the guy you’ve been singing about.]
The small fiery bird perched on Luri’s shoulder was likely the reason.
‘The Fire Spirit King.’
In the original story, spirits never appeared even once.
They were mentioned, sure.
Like old tales lamenting the absence of dragons and spirits that once protected the continent.
‘Seeing it in person, I understand.’
It was strong.
Strong enough to drive out a demon lord.
Of course, its power depended on Luri’s capacity, but even now, it could likely overpower everyone except me and the protagonist’s party.
Adela, who had been sitting next to me, frowned deeply.
“Tch, you again? Luri of Elidore. You’re insufferable, so get lost.”
“Eh, no way! If anyone’s leaving, it’s you, Cadet Adela. I’m staying by Martin’s side!”
Adela was at a similar level to Luri… but the golden hierophant hovering slightly above her head was why she was in Class A.
‘The Desert Hierophant.’
Luri was fine.
But I had concerns about Adela.
After all, in the original story, the Desert Hierophant was destined to fall into Empress Adela’s hands.
“…? Why are you staring? If it’s because my beauty is captivating, shouldn’t you bow and praise me first?”
Seeing Princess Adela’s smug smirk, she didn’t seem likely to fall into villainy.
As the system said… she had taken the path of a hero.
“Alright, everyone, focus~. We’re starting first period right away!”
Hailey, now an official teacher, confidently led the cadets.
The first lesson was giant monster combat.
A clichéd but effective training where you faced giant monsters that appeared based on stages in an artificial training ground.
“No dropouts in stage one! Next stage!”
Perhaps because it was the elite Class A, dropouts only appeared from stage five.
“Let’s review the replay footage! The Gorilla King of the Great Forest is as fast and agile as a monkey, so standing still without a plan is a no-go! That’s the biggest reason for failure. This seems due to a lack of prior knowledge, so make sure to prepare countermeasures!”
Many fell at stages six and seven.
Even Emperor Anette dropped out here.
“Tch.”
“Ugh!”
Elisha, Bord, Lina, Mary, and Muller and Shuga from Kazaks' faction fell at stage eight.
Elisha complained.
“Ugh! How am I supposed to take down a 10-meter Twin-Headed Ogre alone? Are we Gold Knights?”
Those who passed were me, Gilbert, Kazaks… and Luri and Adela.
‘Impressive.’
Stage nine was the Wyvern King.
The so-called Prince of the Skies, the leader among wyverns.
“Ugh, this isn’t right~!”
“Tch, fleeing from a mere drake!”
Luri and Adela, who gained great power but weren’t yet skilled in wielding it, dropped out here.
Kazaks, to put it bluntly, was utterly thrashed, having barely passed stage eight.
‘Remarkable.’
Still, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
Kazaks was several times stronger than in the original.
‘Is this his fate?’
Kazaks.
Gilbert’s rival.
As Gilbert grew stronger, so did he.
And stage ten.
Only Gilbert and I made it this far.
“The stage ten monster you’ll face is practically the first requirement for becoming a Platinum Knight. Even teachers hesitate to challenge this giant beast.”
That was news to me.
The first requirement for becoming a Platinum Knight?
When Hailey activated the device, what appeared was…
[Kieeeeeek—!]
The Drake Lord.
A creature resembling a dragon, rumored to have even 0.1% dragon blood.
Its intelligence was closer to a beast, sometimes called a mindless lizard… but…
“Tch!”
“…!”
Its abilities were undeniable.
In the end, neither Gilbert nor I could overcome the Drake Lord’s wall.
I hadn’t used my full strength, but in my case, I couldn’t even scratch its scales.
“I don’t have much to say about Cadets Gilbert and Martin’s stage ten attempt. Both are already at the level of Gold Knights. Clearing stage ten would place you in the upper-mid tier of Gold Knights.”
“Is that thing even meant to be beaten?”
A cadet from Class D asked.
“Isn’t there some trigger or condition we missed?”
“Absolutely not.”
Hailey answered firmly.
“There was one person. Teacher Hectia, currently hospitalized, cleared stage ten as a third-year graduate.”
As expected, Teacher Hectia.
I was impressed.
Perhaps because I’d fought the Drake Lord myself.
But the cadets weren’t looking at Hectia—they were staring at Gilbert and me.
“So, Gilbert and Martin are remarkable. No first-year has ever passed stage nine in history. Who knows? You all still have time. Let’s take inspiration from these leading cadets.”
Hailey neatly wrapped up and clapped her hands.
“Alright! Morning classes are over! Enjoy lunch, and see you in the afternoon session! By the way, the afternoon is survival training, so head to the artificial training ground!”
Her bright smile and flower-like wave as she said ‘Bye~’ were quintessential Hailey.
‘Hmm.’
I sat at my desk, reviewing the giant monster combat.
The surprising part was defeating the Wyvern King.
The Drake Lord?
I hadn’t expected to beat it.
‘I must’ve gotten stronger.’
The Wyvern King was famed for scales and membranous wings tougher than steel.
Even aura-using swordsmen, who imbue mana into their blades, struggle to cut it.
‘Firearms’ only weakness was destructive power.’
Not only had my usable mana capacity increased significantly, but adding a bit of stellar force boosted the destructive power incomparably.
‘Still, for pure destructive power, stellar force is superior.’
The destructive power varied with 100% mana, 50% mana and 50% stellar force, or 100% stellar force.
The higher the stellar force ratio, the greater the destructive power.
It was only slight, but against non-‘good’ forces, the power increased three, five times or more.
‘Truly touching.’
To think this trash extra grew strong enough to defeat a Wyvern King alone.
All thanks to me.
***
After lunch, Hailey announced to Class A.
“There’s one major difference in the new curriculum.”
Videos appeared on the magical hologram.
Cadets like us entering Time Chaos Dungeons.
“Upper management has decided to allow first- and second-year cadets to participate in Time Chaos Dungeon conquest training, previously reserved for third-year graduates. This was a bold decision by our Archmage Principal.”
The cadets murmured.
Time Chaos Dungeon training!
“We’re… really going into a Time Chaos Dungeon?”
“…I never imagined…”
The protagonist’s party, seasoned by countless trials, reacted less, but their tension was palpable.
I was surprised too.
‘This is an opportunity.’
In a different sense.
‘I can accelerate my plans.’
Most Time Chaos Dungeons were located at the Cosmos Empire’s borders.
Even those naturally occurring within the continent were strictly controlled, with access restricted to the qualified.
Unless they were hidden, like in sewers or ecological parks.
‘They’re granting access?’
With the table set so perfectly, what couldn’t I do?
I had to act immediately.
‘Let’s see.’
A myriad of thoughts raced through my mind.
Which Time Chaos Dungeon should I conquer?
The most critical one from the original story.
‘…No need to think.’
The answer was already clear.
Among countless Time Chaos Dungeons, the one that needed to be conquered first.
‘The Time Chaos Dungeon of Fog Island.’
This world was divided into two major continents: the one housing the Imperium Empire and various nations, and the opposite, the fallen Cosmos Empire’s continent.
At the northern pole, a necromancer occupied eternal glaciers, and somewhere on the planet, there were supposedly dragon lairs, ancient guardians…
‘I don’t know about that. Focus on what’s important.’
At the southern tip of both continents was a small island.
It was once famous for small amounts of specialty goods brought across the sea, enough to sustain the southern continent.
Not a place rich in minerals or abundant in crops.
There, a single entity stood tall.
‘The World Tree. And her daughters, the fairies and elves.’
The first non-human races introduced in The Fallen Crown Prince of the Cosmos Empire.
‘I remember this clearly.’
Hailey’s explanation continued.
“Based on your performance in upcoming classes, the grade of Time Chaos Dungeon you can enter will be restricted. Excellent grades will grant access to higher-grade dungeons, but…”
She shot a piercing glance at some cadets… especially me.
“It’s real combat! I’m warning you, even if you qualify for a high-grade dungeon, rushing in recklessly could get you killed!”
Her pink eyes, hands on hips, and slight lean were intimidating, but what could I do?
“Unlike artificial Time Chaos Dungeons, once you enter, you can’t leave until it’s conquered, and no reinforcements can be sent until a safe zone is secured and a bridge is built!”
I felt like I’d have to apologize to Teacher Hailey.
“Alright, shall we resume class? The afternoon session is survival in extreme conditions! The goal is to survive disasters in deserts, glaciers, lava, jungles, and more!”