Chapter 538: Episode 538
The teleportation faded. Feeling solid ground beneath his feet, Simon opened his eyes to an eerie forest, darker and shrouded in a thicker fog than the waiting area had been.
"Ugh."
"My head."
Beside him, Eshe and Toto had tumbled to the ground, while Lorraine stood perfectly composed, her ruby-like eyes blinking open.
"Is everyone okay?" Simon asked, offering a hand. Eshe shot him a questioning look, then a strange smile spread across her face as she got up on her own.
"Ooh-hoo-hoo.’ Thank you."
’What was that about?’ Simon wondered, giving her a sidelong glance before taking Toto’s hand and helping him to his feet.
"Simon, look," Lorraine called out.
Before them stood the massive skull altar they had only seen on the monitor, a gleaming red relic resting within it.
"Whoa! So this is the fifteen-point relic?" Eshe bounced over, her hand reaching for it.
Simon and Lorraine flinched in unison.
"Wait, Eshe!"
"It’s against the rules for us to move our own red relic. We just talked about this," Simon reminded her.
"I know, I know. Just touching it should be fine." Eshe gave a light wink, then casually picked up the relic and waved it around. She really wasn’t the cautious type.
"Ugh’, it’s darker than I thought," Toto murmured, staring into the shadowed woods.
Eshe set the relic down and wiggled her eyebrows playfully. "Hey, little guy. Think you can walk around by yourself without crying?"
Toto’s face instantly flushed crimson. "O-Of course! I’m a necromancer, too!"
"Ahaha!" Eshe’s easygoing nature dissolved the tension. Simon chuckled, placing a hand on Toto’s shoulder just as an announcement echoed through the trees.
[The test will begin in 30 seconds. Please summon at least one ghoul immediately.]
[You may leave the starting point once the test begins.]
"You heard it."
The four of them simultaneously opened their subspaces, and in an instant, the clearing was filled with the unsettling forms of their undead. The newly summoned ghouls let out guttural cries, their heads swiveling to take in the strange new environment.
[Beginning test countdown. 10. 9.]
"Everyone, stick to the plan," Simon instructed. They all nodded in unison.
[7. 6. 5.]
"President, isn’t this where we’re supposed to do a team cheer?" At Eshe’s suggestion, Simon immediately extended his hand, palm down. The other three placed their hands on top of his.
"Let’s do our best and have no regrets! Go, Team 10!"
"Go!"
As their hands shot into the air, the countdown finished, and a sharp whistle signaled the start of the test.
"Uh, um," Toto muttered, the only one who had lowered his hand. He looked around awkwardly. "Aren’t you supposed to bring your hand down when you cheer?"
---
’Thump, thump, thump!’
Simon and three ghouls raced across the foggy battlefield. Thanks to the synchronized stepping exercises Benya had taught him that morning, running alongside his undead felt perfectly natural.
’For now, let’s take our time and search for relics on the way to our destination.’
"Gurgle! Gurgle!" The ghoul in the lead pressed its nose to the ground, sniffing intently. It met Simon’s gaze for a moment before darting off. Simon quickly followed, finding the creature digging furiously with its clawed hands.
"You two, help it." At Simon’s command, the other ghouls joined in. Before long, they unearthed a shard of a bowl with a bluish sheen, made of a material that resembled bronze.
The first ghoul snatched it up in its mouth, scurried over to Simon, and dropped it at his feet, panting happily. Simon knelt and stroked its head, and the creature visibly preened under the praise while the other ghouls watched with envy.
’So this is a one-point blue relic.’
Even moving the relics had to be done by a ghoul. "Good work," Simon ordered. "Store it."
The ghoul immediately swallowed the shard whole. Ghouls could easily ingest and regurgitate objects of that size.
"Alright. Let’s go."
This test was designed to evaluate the ghouls and nothing else. It tested a necromancer’s ability to utilize their detection skills to find buried targets, their combat prowess when encountering wild monsters, and their synchronization with ghouls controlled by their teammates. The proctor’s intentions were clear. The test could very well end up being two hours of simple relic hunting.
However...
’This time, at least, it won’t be that simple.’
---
’Fwoosh! Fwoosh!’
Nine ghouls tore through the oppressive darkness. At their center was a creature with unusually developed shoulder bones and blade-like protrusions, its forelegs grotesquely enlarged by black magic and alcheMikel drugs. It moved like a gorilla. These were Hector’s ghouls.
’Just you wait, Simon Polentia.’
Following close behind, Hector’s eyes flickered with menace.
"Hector!" a student running beside him called out. "There’s a gray orc ahead—!"
’THWACK!’
Instantly, the muscular gorilla-ghoul launched itself off the ground, intercepting the charging orc and slamming it into the forest floor with a single, devastating blow. The other students watched, speechless.
"Whoa!"
"As expected of the third-ranked student."
The ghoul Hector had prepared for this test was a monster of power and stamina. He didn’t spare the fallen orc a glance, his eyes fixed forward.
"Stay alert. We’re about to enter Team 10’s territory."
Team 10 would surely be on guard. A clash between teams was most likely to occur about an hour in, after the initial collection of nearby relics was complete. But Hector’s team planned to launch a surprise attack on Simon’s base the moment the test began.
"We’ll shatter their formation, break through to the altar, and seize the red relic."
"Yeah!"
This was Simon and Lorraine’s team they were facing. He had let the top spot slip through his fingers in his first year, but this time would be different. He intended to tear them apart from the very start.
Hector’s eyes narrowed. ’Something’s there.’
"EEEEK!"
At the sudden shriek, everyone froze. The sound, like a ghoul’s scream, faded into the distance.
"Tch!" One of the team members grimaced, clutching his forehead. "Dammit! We lost one! How did they—!"
Hector slowly raised his head. He could hear something moving through the trees above—’swoosh, swoosh’.
’Ratchers don’t live in trees.’
All the Summoning students had created their ghouls from rock-dwelling Ratchers. That meant whatever was in the trees was either a wild monster or the ghoul of a necromancer with an insane level of undead control.
"Prepare for an ambush." Hector listened calmly to the sounds above before suddenly thrusting his right arm forward. The muscular ghoul instantly leaped in that direction and slammed into a tree. As the thin trunk tilted, a ghoul tumbled from its branches.
"Get it!"
’THUD!’
Hector’s waiting ghoul pounced. But the fallen ghoul performed a stunning acrobatic feat, kicking its hind legs forward and using the momentum to spring up and strike the jaw of Hector’s ghoul with both feet.
Everyone stared in shock as the agile creature effortlessly regained its footing and vanished back into the forest.
"Did you see that? The way that ghoul moved!"
"That was some freakish agility."
A corner of Hector’s mouth lifted into a smirk. ’So you were here, Simon Polentia. You knew I was coming, just as I expected.’
"Kereuk! Kegegek!" Sinister laughter echoed from the thick fog all around them. There seemed to be more than he’d thought.
"Hector! Maybe we should retreat and come back later..."
"No." Hector lowered his stance. "That’s what they want. Follow me."
He charged forward, his three muscular ghouls leading the way. The rest of his team followed. Hearing the rustle of leaves above, Hector’s smirk widened.
’I already know there’s only one person guarding the altar. Come on down.’
’Fwip!’
A ghoul leaped from a tree, instantly wrapping its legs around his ghoul’s neck, its teeth bared to tear into the nape.
Hector’s ghoul slammed its attacker into the ground as if pounding grain with a pestle.
’A speed-type ghoul, built for agility. But in a contest of pure strength, we have the advantage!’
Hector gestured, signaling the others to press forward. Two of his teammates moved on with their ghouls.
One of their ghouls was sent flying into the fog. Through the mist, the glaring eyes of several medium-sized monsters opened.
"Hector! There are too many monsters up ahead!"
His expression soured. ’What a damn nuisance.’
---
"Hah... Hah..."
Hiding behind a tree, Lorraine pressed a hand to her forehead. Hector had seen the ghoul’s dazzling control and naturally assumed it was Simon, but she was the one on defense. She had just lost a ghoul, and the mental backlash struck her like a physical blow.
’Next.’
She summoned her fourth ghoul from her subspace and sent it into the fray. Knowing Hector would come, Simon had positioned Lorraine as a defender on Team 1’s likely path. Her objective was to hold Hector off for as long as possible with her nine ghouls.
Toto had also played his part. Though he was on the ’relic search team’, he had spent the start of the match luring nearby monsters with his ghoul, which was specialized in digging. By attracting a horde of monsters and then having his ghoul retreat into a pre-dug tunnel, he made the monsters lose their target and wander the area, creating a natural monster barrier.
Between Lorraine’s harassment and the monsters Toto had gathered, they were managing to stall for time. But Hector was no easy opponent. He had seen through their one-defender strategy and was now forcing his way through, luring Lorraine’s agile ghouls into a direct confrontation. The moment their movements were predicted, her ghouls, built for speed and disruption, became easy prey. She lost several more in quick succession.
’I see it.’
Simon’s altar was now in Hector’s sights.
"Wait, Hector!" one of his teammates shouted. "We’re in trouble! Look behind you!"
Hector’s gaze snapped back. Far in the distance, a cloud of red powder blossomed in the sky. It was a distress signal. Their home base was under attack.
---
The defender at Team 1’s base was Pierre Buckler, the teammate Hector trusted most. But now...
"H-How could this..."
Four of his ghouls were already scattered across the ground, defeated.
’Thwack!’
Another ghoul’s jet-black magic circle shattered, and it collapsed. Pierre’s head whipped around.
"Simon Polentia!"
From within a thick green fog, a blue-haired boy with gleaming eyes was approaching.
"Sorry about this," Simon said coolly. He was completely alone. "But I’ll be taking your red relic."
---
His base was under attack. The realization spurred Hector to move even faster.
"Get out of my way!"
His eyes blazed. ’Reno’s Golden Line’ etched itself onto his muscular ghoul’s magic circle, activating ’Dirge’. After blasting through Lorraine’s remaining ghouls with immense power, he finally reached Simon’s altar.
’So that’s your game,’ he thought, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. ’But even if you take our altar, what’s the point if your own base gets taken?’
He strode toward Simon’s altar, victory in his grasp.
His expression crumpled. Team 10’s altar was...
’What the—’
It had already been emptied by someone else.