Chapter 533: Episode 533
"Practical exercise!"
"Begin!"
At Simon’s signal, his ghoul charged fiercely toward the Modified Skeleton. The skeleton tilted its axe, assuming a ready stance.
’If I rush in recklessly, I’ll be done for.’
Simon had the ghoul lower its stance even further, then sent it charging toward the skeleton’s unarmed side. The axe swung in a savage arc. The ghoul, having narrowly ducked to evade it, got behind the Modified Skeleton.
’Creeak—’
The Modified Skeleton couldn’t turn around immediately. Its waist turned first, followed by its legs.
’Its turning speed is slower than I thought. And its rear defense is pathetic compared to its well-armored front. The key to this exercise is to use the ghoul’s mobility to target its back!’
By the time the Modified Skeleton caught up with the ghoul that had moved behind it, the ghoul had already outmaneuvered it and come around to the opposite side. He had completely stolen its timing.
’Now!’
With a ’thud’, the ghoul kicked off the ground and leaped into the air. It aimed for the back of the neck, an area unprotected by armor and clearly the skeleton’s greatest weakness. The moment the ghoul opened its mouth to sink its teeth into the neck...
’Craaack!’
Simon’s eyes widened in shock.
The axe blade instantly followed and dug into the ghoul’s head. He’d been completely outplayed. The ghoul collapsed with a heavy ’thud’, and the Modified Skeleton triumphantly brought its axe down, obliterating the summon.
"First attempt, failed. Student Simon Polentia has eleven ghouls remaining," the calm voice of the Head Assistant announced from behind.
Simon grimaced and clutched his head. When a summon is completely destroyed, the necromancer connected to its consciousness also suffers a mental blow. Looking around, he saw that several other students were already dazed or down on one knee. Hector was no exception. Everyone had been taken out.
"Alright, next," the Head Assistant said impassively. "Please summon your second ghoul."
The other TAs repeated the same instruction. The students gritted their teeth, opened their subspaces, and summoned their ghouls. Simon did the same, lowering the hand that had been clutching his head.
’I didn’t even have a chance to cast the Dirge.’
His plan had been to draw the diagonal line on the magic circle the moment the ghoul bit into the skeleton’s neck, using the Dirge’s effect to sever it. But his move had been read. And above all, the ghoul was too slow.
’I need to change my thinking. At my current skill level, the rampage will only last about a minute, but that’s enough. No matter how the opponent reacts, I’ll cast the Dirge first and then attack.’
The Head Assistant, who had been standing with his hands behind his back, raised his right arm.
"You may begin whenever you are ready."
His voice was utterly relaxed. Simon, too, raised his right arm with a slight smile on his face. The ghoul lowered its stance, then kicked off the dirt floor and shot forward.
’I’ll play the long game, prime the circle.’
To cast a Dirge, the circulation of Jet-Black in the summoning magic circle had to be perfect. ’Rino’s Golden Line’ had to be drawn when all the runic words and formulas were functioning properly for the power to be delivered correctly.
’Priming it. I’m priming it.’
Simon’s ghoul circled the Modified Skeleton, its movements precise enough to not cross the arena line. At the same time, he channeled Jet-Black, preparing to draw the line in a corner of the magic circle.
’Clack!’
In the end, the skeleton was the first to charge, raising its axe.
’Swoosh! Swoosh!’
The moment the ghoul narrowly avoided the axe blade, its magic circle became even more distinct. The entire circle, the ecosystem that constituted the ghoul, was operating at one hundred percent without a shred of leeway, showing its will to win this battle. Simon realized this was the moment.
’When you draw the line, be bold!’
The voices of Professors Lin and Lune came to mind. Drawing the line slowly would be the same as severing the magic circle with his own hands. To make the Jet-Black mistake this line for a new circuit, he had to draw it in a single, swift motion.
’Hnngh!’
Simon moved the Jet-Black and sliced a line through the ghoul’s summoning magic circle. The power that had been circulating throughout the circle like an ecosystem now moved along the newly created line.
’Did it work?’
The effect was immediate. The look in the ghoul’s eyes changed. He could feel the Jet-Black surging throughout the undead’s body.
’Boom!’
The ghoul, launched by the explosive Jet-Black, shot forward and circled behind the Modified Skeleton. It then leaped up, clamped its teeth onto the neck bone, wrapped its hind legs around the waist, and grabbed the arms with its front legs.
"He got it!"
"Simon got it!"
"Hector too!"
’Waaaaah!’ The students watching erupted in cheers. While the other five had long since lost their ghouls and were sitting down, Simon and Hector had both succeeded in getting their ghouls onto the backs of the Modified Skeletons. The skeletons thrashed about wildly.
"As expected from the aces!"
"Just a little more!"
The gazes of Simon and Hector, both drenched in sweat, met. They both whipped their heads back around.
’I’ll be faster!’
Just as their concentration was about to reach its peak... ’thud!’ The ghoul’s Dirge duration ended first. Unable to withstand the Modified Skeleton’s violent resistance, the ghoul was slammed to the ground. The axe came down, and its head was split open with a sickening ’thwack’.
Immediately after, Hector’s ghoul was also subdued and met the same fate. The two boys staggered, grimacing. Once again, the Head Assistant’s cold voice rang out.
"Second attempt, failed. Student Simon Polentia has nine ghouls remain—"
It was then.
’BOOOOM!’
The body of the ghoul that had collapsed with its head smashed in suddenly exploded like a grotesque balloon. The Head Assistant flinched in surprise, and small screams were heard from various places.
’An explosion?’
Of course, it wasn’t very powerful. The ghoul’s remains merely splattered onto the Modified Skeleton. Simon panted as he righted his posture.
"One more time, please."
The Head Assistant’s eyes narrowed. ’What was he trying to do?’
While the students were murmuring, Professors Lin and Lune came forward.
"Good job, good job! Those two kids just showed some decent results," Lin said.
"Shall we all find out why they failed?" Lune added. The twin professors unfolded a magic circle in the air.
"The five kids who failed earlier all—"
"—failed because they drew the line ambiguously."
Drawing a line with enough force to bisect the summoning magic circle they had worked so hard to create required more courage and decisiveness than it looked. The other students had all failed because they drew the line too slowly or hesitated.
"The two kids who managed to at least imitate the Dirge drew the line decisively! But!" The twin professors displayed Simon’s and Hector’s magic circles side by side for all to see. The flaw was immediately obvious: both lines were perfectly straight.
"The problem was that they were too decisive!" Lune exclaimed.
"You weren’t supposed to draw a straight line, but connect the internal components as you came out! In a slightly curved S-shape!" Lin finished.
Simon nodded, while Hector clicked his tongue with a ’tsk’. ’Easier said than done. It’s not something you can just do as you please in a real fight.’
The Head Assistant spoke with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Now, please prepare your next ghoul."
All seven students summoned ghouls again. Their faces were pale, and they looked like they were struggling to endure. To cast a Dirge, the mental connection with the summon had to be strong, but the sensation of that summon being chopped up by an axe was also transmitted to the necromancer. The mental toll was immense. The students watching also clicked their tongues.
"They all have at least nine shots left, so they can try nine more times."
"I don’t know if their minds can take it."
Even in this situation, Simon’s enthusiasm grew, and he clenched his fists. It was already the third round. His goal was to pass the assignment here and enter the final practical with at least nine ghouls.
’Let’s do this.’
The third attempt began. This time, Simon again had his ghoul circle around, dodging attacks. He had improved in every aspect compared to the previous attempt. Since he was reading the attack patterns, he could dodge the Modified Skeleton’s attacks more boldly, and he could raise the ghoul’s magic circle circulation rate and condition more quickly.
’Now!’
The moment he felt the timing was right, Simon drew a line through the ghoul’s magic circle without a hint of hesitation. ’Rumble!’ A huge amount of Jet-Black erupted from the ghoul’s body, and it charged forward like a cannonball.
The Head Assistant was startled. ’A frontal assault?’
It charged straight ahead instead of flanking. The Modified Skeleton swung the axe it held with both hands with all its might, but the ghoul’s body passed by, leaving an ink-black trajectory.
’Crack!’
The students watching let out cries of surprise. The skeleton’s arm, the one holding the axe, was clamped firmly in the ghoul’s mouth.
"Whoa! So fast!"
"When did it grab the arm...!"
The ghoul spat out the arm with a ’ptooey’ and lowered its stance. The Modified Skeleton drew its secondary weapon, a dagger, from its waist and swung it, but...
’Clang!’
The ghoul, properly empowered by the Dirge, was simply swatting the dagger away with its pure arm strength.
"Woohoo!" The students, engrossed in Simon’s performance, cheered. As if circling to its back was no longer necessary, the ghoul used its strength to climb on top of the Modified Skeleton and pin it down.
’Even if he succeeded with the Dirge, is he really coming at me from the front after I told him the back was the weak point?’ the Head Assistant thought, biting his lip. ’I’ll teach you the price of arrogance.’
’Thump! Thump!’
A gravitational pull emanated from the Modified Skeleton’s body, and the arm the ghoul had spat onto the ground reattached to its shoulder. It used both arms to grab the ghoul tightly.
’Student Simon’s magic circle is still closer to a straight line than an S-shape. The Dirge’s duration should end in a few seconds.’
However.
Far from a few seconds, nearly a minute passed, and the ghoul’s power remained undiminished. Its eyes burned with dark blue Jet-Black, and an inky energy constantly shimmered from its entire body.
’How is this possible?’
The ghoul headbutted the Modified Skeleton’s forehead. The skull was completely shattered, and it stomped hard on the skeleton’s summoning magic circle, damaging it. The ghoul, having secured its victory, threw its head back toward the sky and let out a ferocious roar.
The first successful student of this practical exercise had appeared. The other students cheered loudly for him. Hector, who had clung on tenaciously but was narrowly defeated in this round, was punching the ground with his fist.
"Impressive." Even the Head Assistant, who was clutching his forehead as the mental connection was forcibly severed, couldn’t help but acknowledge it. "Student Simon Polentia, you pa—"
However.
His concentration had not yet broken. Simon’s pupils were trembling as he focused on something more than the immediate task of defeating the enemy.
’What is he doing?’
"Assistant."
Just then, Simon, with a dazed look in his eyes, opened his mouth.
"Be careful."
The Head Assistant felt a chill and deployed a Jet-Black shield. Instantly, with a ’boom!’, a large cloud of dust erupted around the ghoul.
’RUUUUMBLE—’
Simon finally let out a long breath and checked the time. ’One minute and fifteen seconds.’
He had been checking the duration of the Dirge.
"Wait, Simon!"
"What did you do?"
Just then, Professors Lune and Lin approached. Simon looked at them and answered, "I was trying to extend the duration of the Dirge."
"How?"
Simon explained without hesitation. "Like when a zombie uses Corpse Explosion, I drew the line with the magic circle already overloaded from the start. Then, I tried to maintain that state by circulating the turbulent Jet-Black energy throughout the ghoul’s body and feeding it back into the magic circle."
The TAs’ eyes widened. Even the students who didn’t fully understand Simon’s theory could tell at a glance that this was an incredibly dangerous act. The twin professors thought the same.
"The idea is good—but the risks far outweigh the merits," Lin said sternly.
"Such a dangerous technique is forbidden from now on," Lune added.
"Yes, my apologies."
In any case, Simon had safely passed and would be heading into the final exam with a whopping nine ghouls remaining. His vacant spot was immediately filled by another student.
"Simon! Great job!" As Simon returned to his seat, Toto, who was nearby, came over.
Simon immediately summoned a ghoul from his subspace.
"Toto."
"What?"
"I..." Simon’s eyes grew serious. At first, it was just an experiment to extend the Dirge’s duration, but... "I think I can make ghouls explode, too."
"Huh?"
Toto looked at him as if he were looking at a madman again.