Chapter 121: 121
The mid-term evaluation for the first-year students of Velvet Academy was a test entirely supervised by Chairman Lina from start to finish.
Therefore, no one knew which country's territory the island belonged to or where it was located in the sea. Even as they returned to Korea to deal with the opened gate, the instructors still didn't know the name or location of the island.
But deep within the island, in a dim underground cave, a group of women cursed under their breath.
"Fuck! What the hell is this? How long do we have to keep doing this!"
A woman who resembled a stoat with slit eyes spat out a curse. Then, a bald woman with burn marks all over her body slowly opened her eyes.
"Shut up."
"Ha, Chief! Shit! I'm going crazy! It's been a week since we've been stuck in this cave, eating nothing but roots and seeing no light!"
The stoat-like woman vented her frustration. The other women joined in, cursing as well.
"Damn, I'm hungry! Thirsty! I can't take it anymore! Chief!"
"Haah, every time I hear the soft voices of the male cadets outside, I go crazy. Why don't we just quietly bring one here…?!"
"...Gulp. I took a peek last time, and there's a really hot guy with black hair."
The bald woman looked at them with piercing eyes.
"Then go. But you'll have to leave your tongue behind."
At her words, the women who had been complaining fell silent, as if they had never spoken.
What their chief, Rebecca, said was never a joke.
"...But, Chief. How long do we have to keep hiding like this? I'm really at my limit."
The stoat-like woman spoke with a subdued voice.
"Hmm…"
Rebecca swallowed her saliva.
Things had gotten very complicated.
It had already been a week since they dug a tunnel and hid here. They were all Demons.
They had temporarily hidden on this uninhabited island, away from the eyes of the world, but just two days after they settled here, the Velvet Academy cadets suddenly arrived in droves.
Fortunately, Rebecca was a mid-level executive of the Demon Society, so she had an artifact that hid her mana. Thanks to that, they had succeeded in hiding in the tunnel and evading the eyes of the Mage. But she didn't know how long that would last.
Eventually, they would be discovered the moment the Lina set foot on this island.
"Chief, still no word from above?"
"...Yeah. They just told us to wait for now."
"Shit, wait?! We're gonna die waiting like this…! Are we being cut off?!"
Rebecca bit her lip.
"..."
She wasn't happy about the situation either. Once upon a time, she had been a mid-level executive of the Demon Society, walking with her shoulders back and her head held high.
A month ago, the monster arena she had been running caught the eye of a woman. A woman with short black hair and a ghostly sword.
A woman who resembled a killer ghost, with a cold expression.
She completely destroyed Rebecca's gambling den, along with some strangely masked women.
And on top of that, she left behind not a single speck of dust of the secret Demon Society branch she had established below.
Her boss had already lost his life to the woman's sword, and all Rebecca could do was escape with a few subordinates who had been under her.
The memory of the woman's emotionless eyes sent shivers down Rebecca's spine.
'I hid here to avoid her, in a place no one knows about, and it turns out to be the first-year students' exam site for Velvet Academy?'
Could her luck be any worse?
Drdrdr──
Then,
Something in her pocket began to vibrate.
"...Huh?"
This vibration…
It was the artifact, the communication stone of the Demon Society, which she had always kept like a lifeline, but which had been unresponsive since the branch was destroyed.
Gulp.
Rebecca carefully infused mana into the artifact, worried that the Mage might notice.
[ ...It's been a while, Rebecca. ]
Hiss!
A displeasing voice, like metal scraping, emerged from the artifact, causing Rebecca to suck in a breath.
It was real. A message from the main branch of the Demon Society!
"...For destruction."
Rebecca straightened her posture, even though the other party wasn't visible, and responded. The women around her also held their breath, listening intently to the artifact.
[ I will give you a chance to make up for your past mistakes. ]
The main point came out of nowhere, but Rebecca's heart thrilled at receiving the order.
"Yes, thank you."
[ Kill the Academy's cadets. ]
But the order that came down was completely unexpected.
"Ah, you mean the Academy students…?"
Cold sweat broke out on Rebecca's bare forehead. Wasn't this as good as telling her to die?!
[Yes.]
"But…!"
[You foolish girl. You still harbor doubts about the Incarnation.]
"I'm sorry!"
[Lina isn't here right now. In fact, we have diverted the attention of all the high-ranking officials of the Velvet Academy. The only ones left on the airship are trash.]
"!"
Rebecca's body trembled with a shudder.
Why had she been hiding until now? It was because the monster, Lina, was too powerful for her to face, no matter how strong she became. So, the ones left here were just a bunch of weaklings.
"…Kuhahahahaha!"
Rebecca's lips curled up into a sinister smile, and her subordinates around her wore identical expressions of ecstatic joy.
[Then, I expect great results.]
"For destruction!"
Thus, those who had been biding their time in the shadows began to stir with anticipation.
.
.
.
Waaaaaaaah!!!
Kill them! Kill!!!
Leave none alive!!!
Uga Uga!
Aaah! You crazy bastards!!!
"So, Y-Yuha? What, what is this…?"
Sophia's eyes shook as she witnessed the battlefield.
In the middle of a deserted island, a grand battle was unfolding.
"Is, is this the Velvet Hunter Academy's test…?"
Primitive-looking individuals covered in brown liquid and sophisticatedly dressed students were engaged in combat.
Sophia was at a loss for how to make sense of the current situation.
Her gaze naturally shifted towards Jin Yuha.
And upon witnessing this spectacle, Jin Yuha…
I don't know.
What is this?
Scary.
Stood there with a dazed expression, staring at the battlefield.
'Wait, just for a moment, seriously… How does it come to this?'
This mid-term evaluation was a two-week-long test. The first week involved testing their survival skills, forming parties, and acquiring coins through monsters. The remaining week was spent using those accumulated coins and experiences to hunt and compete against each other.
Attacks from fellow students wouldn't result in death. If a student sustained a critical injury during the competition, they would be immediately summoned back to the airship.
However, there were uninvited guests who interfered; if a student was attacked by them, they wouldn't be summoned.
'…In the game there were some death during this part of the story. This incident will lead to the chairman making a public apology.'
Of course, there would be mitigating circumstances due to the emergency situation involving an S-grade gate. Nonetheless, it was a painful mistake that the students had been attacked by the Incarnation.
So, they had to heal injured students with healing magic or send them up to the airship by defeating them. And they had to quickly deal with the Incarnation before the damage got worse.
That was the core of this main story.
'…But how did this happen?'
I was planning to join one of our Utopia party members and strike a blow to those Incarnation bastards, but…
They were supposed to be in a 3-man squad survival game, but now they're playing a war simulation game.
And our Utopia party members are right in the middle of it, engaged in a bloody battle.
Kwaaaaaang—!!!
Kang Do-hee and Lee Yoo-ri's shields clashed, creating a deafening sound.
"Wow—!!! Fighting Dog! And Country Bob!"
Sophia exclaimed in awe from the sidelines, her eyes sparkling.
While the general public only knew of the famous "Fighting Dog" Kang Do-hee and "Cheonhwa," Shin Se-hee, the members of Jin Yuha's fan club were typically well-versed in the members of his Utopia party as well.
Of course, the size of their fandom couldn't compare to that of Fighting Dog and Cheonhwa. Nevertheless, the tank, "Country Bob," and the supporter, "Squinty Schemer," had their own minor fan followings.
"Hmm… It's surprisingly even."
For now, she gave up on trying to understand the situation. There wasn't time to call each of them and ask for an explanation.
In the center, Kang Do-hee and Lee Yoo-ri fought, while Shin Se-hee led other students in picking off the primitives from the outskirts.
But it seemed like a matter of numbers. Even with Kang Do-hee and Shin Se-hee teaming up, they were somehow maintaining an even balance.
"But Kang Do-hee hasn't used her Berserk skill yet. Once she does, Lee Yoo-ri will be at a disadvantage."
No matter how blessed a tanker Yoo-ri was, there was nothing she could do against a skill that ignored all matchups.
"So, for now…"
Hmm. Or maybe this is even better?
Anyway, as many students as possible had to be sent up to the airship before the Incarnation appeared. And in this chaotic situation…
'I might be able to get the last hit. And since they're all gathered here, I don't have to go looking for them one by one?'
And since most of the students were gathered here, it was clear that the Incarnation would come to this spot.
Having sorted out my thoughts, I turned to Sophia with a sly smirk and said, "Sophia."
"Yes?"
"Let's earn some coins. Let's aim for 3rd place."
"3rd… 3rd place? Me?"
The rank of 3rd seemed too high for Sophia, and she replied with a hesitant voice.
'…She's truly a genius, but she doesn't realize it herself.'
To be honest, if the others saw this, they might call me lucky.
"Sophia, please, help me. Please. I really want to be in the top 3…"
I held Sophia's hand and pleaded with her, using a tone that sounded like I was begging. For some reason, this always worked the best.
'It wasn't like this in the game, though. Maybe it's because she had wounds on her body back then.'
It was a reasonable guess.
After the fight with the bear, Sophia had maintained a certain distance from the other students, even though they couldn't see her wounds.
But now, without any injuries, her true personality was coming out.
Sophia was the type of person who would agree to almost any request, no matter how unreasonable it might seem. If I asked her to retake the entrance exam and re-enroll in the Academy, she would probably do that too.
'The kid's too nice for her own good. It's a problem. How does she expect to survive in the Academy like this?'
Well, I was taking advantage of her kindness too.
"Sophia, please. Just this once, help me."
As I urged her again, Sophia nodded with a face as red as a tomato.
"Yes, yes. I'll, I'll try…"
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