Chapter 37
After another round, it was finally Team 7’s last turn.
If they failed again, the chances of winning in next week’s actual battle against a real Cyclops would become even slimmer.
Everyone was more determined than ever. Especially Maelyn, who stood seriously warming up with utmost focus.
“It’s coming!”
With Dick’s shout, the Cyclops burst through the thick trees and let out a roar. As always, Simon’s skeleton was the first to charge out.
‘Just hold on, no matter what!’
While Simon’s skeletons caught the cyclops’ attention, Maelyn prepared a Dark Flare, and Dick and Kamibarez readied Exhaust.
Up to this point, it was the same as before.
Crack!
One skeleton couldn't withstand the Cyclops’ flurry of blows and was smashed to pieces. Immediately, Simon connected to the lingering will of the skeleton behind it and issued an attack command.
Slash!
The Cyclops, slashed across the back, erupted in fury and turned to attack the skeleton.
“Dark Flare is 80% complete!”
Maelyn shouted.
“First Exhaust completed!”
“Me too! Moving to the next one!”
The two conjured Exhaust in their right hands, and immediately began forming another one with their left.
This was the core of their new plan.
Simon’s skeletons could only hold the Cyclops in place before Maelyn or the others began their offensive, when the Cyclops still perceived the skeletons as its sole enemies.
They intended to stretch that early phase as long as possible, squeezing out every bit of advantage.
Though Maelyn had completed her Dark Flare, she remained still, while the other two prepared their second Exhaust.
It was their first time trying dual casting, so both made frequent mistakes, but Simon miraculously managed to hold the line with his masterful undead control.
‘Seventh unit deployed. Go!’
Indeed, Simon’s role in holding the line early on was the most crucial.
If his concentration wavered even slightly, the Cyclops would charge straight at Maelyn.
“Simon! Now!”
At last, Dick and Kamibarez completed four Exhausts.
At their signal, Simon instantly dismantled the skeleton’s structure.
The skeleton crumbled to the ground with a clatter, and the Cyclops, now without a target, looked around until it spotted Maelyn.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The monster stormed forward, shaking the earth. At the same time, it entered the curse’s effective range.
“Exhaust!”
“Exhaust!”
Dick and Kamibarez’s magic circles flared, and the curse latched onto the Cyclops’ body.
The Cyclops slowed down. Maelyn used the opening to throw her Dark Flare.
Black flames scorched its skin, filling the air with a sickening burning stench.
—Kyaaaaaaaaargh!
The Cyclops flailed and raised its club. Simon, observing closely, shouted.
“Frontal strike, coming down!”
Maelyn stepped on Darkness and leapt. The club slammed into where she had just been, denting the ground.
“Fall back! Now it’s a sweeping uppercut as it bends!”
Whoosh!
The Cyclops twisted its body elastically, swinging its club upward, but Maelyn dodged that too.
“Frontal dash!”
Simon predicted the Cyclops’ movement, and Maelyn followed his lead to evade.
Thanks to the quadruple-stacked Exhausts, even Maelyn, who lacked athletic prowess, could dodge. Exhaust was especially effective against monsters like the Cyclops that relied heavily on physical movement.
“Here comes another one!”
Dick and Kamibarez added another pair of Exhausts.
A total of six Exhausts!
The once-rampaging Cyclops, swinging its club recklessly, showed signs of fatigue for the first time.
“I’ll use a haematological spell!”
Kamibarez drew blood from her fingertips, forming a red magic circle.
Haematology spell Blood Silk. A carpet woven of blood shot forward at terrifying speed, passing right in front of the Cyclops’ face.
Though it lacked killing power, the thick scent of blood made the Cyclops flinch and hesitate.
“Now! Simon!”
Two skeletons—somehow already on the Cyclops’ back—hooked chains around its neck. These had been borrowed from Dick’s Subspace.
The monster howled and tried to charge Maelyn, but the chains went taut, halting its movement. The skeletons had already anchored both ends to trees.
—Kyaaaaaaaaargh!
Still burning from the lingering flames of the Dark Flare, the Cyclops thrashed in agony. With some breathing room, Maelyn began preparing her next Dark Flare with renewed urgency.
‘D-Did he actually pull that off?’
A tactic using the terrain formed by illusions.
When Simon first explained the plan, it had seemed reckless, but he had executed it effortlessly.
Maelyn clicked her tongue in disbelief and launched her second Dark Flare.
Fwoooosh!
The dying embers roared back to life.
The blood vessels in the Cyclops’ eyes burst as it let out a shrieking wail, like a sinner flailing in the flames of hell.
“Seventh one coming!”
Dick kept stacking Exhausts. Now, even Simon joined Kamibarez in building Exhaust.
Crack! Craaaack!
The Cyclops thrashed violently. Eventually, the two trees anchored by the chains were uprooted.
Dragging the trees and chains behind it, the Cyclops started approaching again.
“Leave it to me!”
Seeing that, Dick cleverly imbued the chains with Darkness.
Dick’s specialty was Enchantments based on Darkness.
The Darkness in the chains converted entirely into weight, turning the Cyclops into something like a beast dragging a massive tool.
And then—
“Just go down alreadyyyyy!”
With a rare battle cry, Maelyn’s Dark Flare slammed into the Cyclops.
Boom!
At last, the monster dropped to its knees. Flames engulfed its entire body, and the foul smell of burning flesh spread across the forest.
Soon, only ashes lay crumpled on the ground.
[Simulation Successful]
Elapsed time: 6 minutes 48 seconds.
Damage dealt: 100%.
Barrier gauge: 97%.
Overall evaluation: B.
“We did it!”
Maelyn clenched her fists and shouted.
“W-Wow! We really beat it! Hahahaha!”
“You were all amazing!”
The other three rushed over.
Everything had gone exactly to plan. And each person had fulfilled their role perfectly. Team 7 jumped, hugged, and cheered together in pure joy.
—Congratulations on the clear, Team 7.
Jane’s voice followed.
She pointed out that they were too reliant on a single summoner’s capabilities and that their hunting time was too long, but overall, it was a positive evaluation.
They were tasked with maximizing their mastery of Dark Flare and Exhaust during the remaining time and the weekend.
“Thank you, Professor!”
As they stepped out of the training room, several students began clapping for them. Many eyes were filled with envy.
Sure, it had taken a long time, but they had taken down a Cyclops.
“Yo, Simon! As expected of my rival! Great job!”
Cindy Vivace approached and raised her hand high. When Simon smiled and held out his palm, she smacked it with a loud slap!
‘Ouch.’
Simon shook his hand and asked,
“Did your team succeed?”
“Of course! Once I got the hang of Spirit Form, it was a breeze!”
While Team 7 had centered around Maelyn, Team 5 was, without exaggeration, entirely carried by Cindy Vivace.
She would evade the Cyclops’ attacks in Spirit Form, which made her immune to physical damage, and return repeatedly to slash it with a Darkness-infused scythe prepared by her teammates.
They managed to defeat the Cyclops without much difficulty.
“But Simon, weren’t you majoring in Spiritology?”
“...I told you I’m not.”
As everyone chatted in a friendly atmosphere, only Hector, who had just finished his simulation and was taking a break, sat silently, his eyes glinting with a menacing glare.
* * *
Contrary to the notorious rumors surrounding Keyzen, Simon was having the time of his life at the academy.
The classes taught by the Keyzen professors were intense, but without a doubt, incredibly fun.
Chatting with friends during breaks about assignments, running with Dick to grab limited lunch menu items, spending free time at the library, or learning undead control from Feer’s tutoring, all of it was genuinely enjoyable.
In Katarology class, Professor Bahil had started paying more attention to Simon. Even Maelyn had begun reconsidering what Dick had said.
‘Is Professor Bahil really playing favorites with Simon?’
Of course, Simon shook his head.
His grades in Katarology were low, and he hadn’t done any prep work before entering school, so he constantly fell behind in practicals. There was no reason for a meritocratic powerhouse like Bahil to show him favoritism.
“That’s all for today’s class. Have a great weekend.”
“Thank you, Professor!”
With Eric’s Darkness Dynamics class wrapping up, the week had come to a close without incident.
Tomorrow was finally the weekend!
The students, all in high spirits, were making plans to hang out in Rochest.
“Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic.”
Watching the excited students, Maelyn muttered as she packed her bag.
“The Cyclops assessment is next week, and they’re seriously thinking about going to Rochest? They’re hopeless fools without a shred of discipline.”
“Oh, really?”
Dick, leaning back in his chair, supported his head with one hand and chuckled.
“Could it be that you’re just sulking? Kami got asked out, and no one invited the Ace of the Ivory Tower?”
“Hey!!”
The two started bickering, as usual. Just as Dick had said, Kamibarez had been called outside the classroom by a male student.
Simon figured it wasn’t surprising, she was popular.
She had a cute appearance, a gentle personality, was kind to everyone, and always had a smile. Of course the guys wouldn’t just leave her alone.
Right then, Kamibarez came rushing back into the classroom.
“Kami! What happened?”
Dick quickly asked.
“Well…”
Her face flushed red, and in a quiet, almost whispering voice, she replied,
“I’m sorry to him, but… I turned him down…”
“Knew it!”
Maelyn’s face lit up 200% brighter in relief.
“I knew Kami was sensible! You’re staying behind with us to train over the weekend, right?”
“Ah, yes! After that simulation, I really felt I was lacking… I’d like to practice with everyone.”
As she said that, Kamibarez subtly glanced toward Simon.
Their eyes met, and she quickly looked away in surprise, her gaze falling to the floor.
“Sorry~ I’m out. I’ve got business appointments.”
Dick shrugged as he spoke.
Maelyn glared at him, but didn’t say more. After all, for someone aiming to be a merchant, weekend schedules were just as important as class.
With arms crossed, Maelyn now turned to Simon.
“Don’t tell me you have plans this weekend too, like that idiot?”
Simon’s face twitched. He was planning to visit the ruins this weekend to meet Feer.
“...Tomorrow’s a bit tough, but I’ll join the training the day after.”
“Oh, come on! You too? Don’t you realize how crucial your role is in this assessment?”
Simon quickly waved his hands.
“It’s not for fun. I’m doing personal training.”
“Personal training?”
“Yeah. There’s someone in Rochest who helps me with Summonology.”
Maelyn blinked in surprise.
“Oh my, so you got yourself weekend tutoring? At least you do realize you came in without any prior study.”
“Y-Yeah…”
Still looking down, Kamibarez suddenly lifted her head with a start.
“Th-Then we’ll see you at Keyzen the day after tomorrow, right?”
“Yeah. I’ve got to coordinate with you guys, after all.”
“Thank goodness!”
“Hey, Dick! You’d better show up tomorrow night!”
“I’m not sure, but I’ll try.”
“God, you always act like you’re so busy.”
“The lonely girl with a free weekend: Maelyn.”
“Drop dead!”
Simon laughed aloud at the two bickering. At the same time, his mind was turning over his weekend plans.
‘There aren’t many days left before the real battle.’
Simon planned to undergo intense special training with Feer this weekend.
In truth, he hadn’t told the other members, but his goal this time wasn’t just to stall for time with undead.
‘I’m going to take down the Cyclops with a skeleton.’
It was something no other Summonology student in Class A had even considered attempting, yet Simon was planning to do it.
Superb.